PRACTICE AND POLITICS OF CORPORAL PUNISHMENT IN SCHOOLS: A CASE STUDY OF DISTRICT PESHAWAR,

Submitted By: AKHTAR MUNIR PhD Scholar

Research Supervisor: PROF. DR. BASHARAT HUSSAIN

A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Social

Sciences, , in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for

the Award of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Social Work

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WORK UNIVERSITY OF PESHAWAR FEBRUARY, 2019

Abstract

The practice of corporal punishment against children is a common phenomenon around the world. This study examined the phenomenon of corporal punishment in schools of

Peshawar, Pakistan as very minimum research has been carried out on this issue in

Pakistan. Previous studies proved that the practice of corporal punishment is associated with numerous negative impacts on children whilst others indicate positive impacts.

The present study addressed a range of dimensions from physical to psychological and from sociological to religious doctrine, which are linked with the phenomenon of corporal punishment.

The research was conducted in Peshawar, Pakistan. Due to the sensitive nature of the topic in Pakistan, the selected methodology was qualitative, adopting a purposive sampling technique for participant selection. A sample of fifty interviewees was achieved; ten each of teachers, parents, child psychologists, religious scholars and non- government organization workers. Data was collected through in-depth interviews using an interview guide. To enhance validity and reliability data was triangulated with field notes and analysis of relevant policy documents and the research literature.

Informed consent was obtained from each participant and data anonymity and confidentiality was ensured.

Applied discourse analysis of interview data found that participants were supportive of the practice of corporal punishment in some cases. Cultural acceptability, personal experience in the past, achieving academic goals, lack of awareness, illiteracy, religious factors, anger, work stress, school environment, teacher’s frustration and teachers lack of understanding of child behaviour are some of the main causes of corporal punishment

i practice. Negative impacts of corporal punishment on children were also recognized by respondents. These included; an increase in anti-social behaviour and aggression, escalation to physical abuse, spoiled creativity, lack of courage, anxiety, depression, frustration, poor academic achievement, criminal tendencies, promoting a culture of violence and drop out from school. Conversely, some participants consider corporal punishment beneficial for adult respect, obedience and the achievement of academic goals.

The study provides research based policy recommendations for abolishing corporal punishment from schools including; educational system reform, mass awareness, teacher training programmes, promoting alternative methods for behaviour modification to teachers and parents, strengthening of parents-teachers council, dealing with teachers own frustration, following the real meaning of Islamic teaching, effective legislation and implementation, opening up complaint mechanisms, effective monitoring, evaluation and accountability, prioritizing child rights, enhancing government interest in child education, advocacy seminars on child rights, promoting a culture of rewards and appreciation in schools and appointing Social Worker’s and

Child Psychologists to support the strategy. This combination of measures will be helpful in dealing with the practice of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan.

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Dedication

Firstly, I would like to dedicate this work to the memory of my late parents Wali

Muhammad (1943-2002) and Zarwari Begum (1953-2013) who sadly passed away before the completion of this work.

Secondly, I would also like to dedicate this work to my family. There are no words to express my gratitude to them. Thank you for your support, kindness and encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that has kept me motivated and enthusiastic about this study.

Lastly, I would like to dedicate this work to the children of Pakistan who suffer from neglect, exploitation and violence not only in schools but also in homes, and to the professionals, researchers and pediatrician who are working tirelessly to make

Pakistan a safe place for children.

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Acknowledgments

First and the foremost, I wish to give praise to Almighty Allah who has bestowed upon me the courage, wellbeing and determination to complete my doctoral studies with great passion, zeal and enthusiasm.

Doctoral research requires huge personal effort and motivation, and I have been blessed with the help and support of so many people during this journey and throughout my life. Too numerous to mention individually, I would like to express my sincerest thanks to you all.

In particular, I would like to thank my supervisor Prof. Basharat Hussain who has taught me how rigorous Social Work research is undertaken. I admire his dynamism, intellect, academic excellence and philosophical thinking, which made this study more original, interesting and relevant. I also appreciate his time, guidance, patience, commitment, encouragement and invaluable ideas, which enabled me to complete this dissertation. It has been an honour to be his doctoral student.

I would also like to thank Wajid Ihsan (Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan), Adnan

Ali (Bahria University, Islamabad), Syed Naqeeb Hussain (Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat), and Hamid Alam and Sajjad Hussain (University of

Malakand, Pakistan) for their invaluable inputs and suggestions to the study.

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My deepest gratitude is given to my best friends Shakeel Ahmad, Zahid Ali and Zahid

Amin for their moral support and encouragement. I am appreciative of my nephews

Asad Ali and Zeeshan, who asked so many questions about my research that I remained enthusiastic and committed throughout the PhD journey.

I am very thankful for the research participants who gave their invaluable time and agreed to be interviewed and to Adnan Quddus, Fazal Hayat, Rajmali Khan and Tariq

Mehmood for assisting with data collection process.

Finally, I am deeply grateful to my family for providing continuous encouragement during my doctoral studies and am appreciative of their prayers for the successful completion of this project. In addition, I am extremely indebted to my brother-in-laws

Amjad Ali and Sabz Ali, who have had an important influence on my academic career, including this life-changing PhD journey.

Akhtar Munir

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Author’s Declaration

I, Akhtar Munir, hereby state that my PhD thesis titled “Practice and Politics of

Corporal Punishment in Schools: A Case Study of District Peshawar, Pakistan” is my own work and has not been submitted previously by me for taking any degree from the University of Peshawar or anywhere else in the country/world.

At any time if my statement is found to be incorrect even after my graduation the

University of Peshawar has the right to withdraw my PhD degree.

Name of Student: Akhtar Munir

Dated: 15.02.2019

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Plagiarism Undertaking

I solemnly declare that research work presented in the thesis titled “Practice and

Politics of Corporal Punishment in Schools: A Case Study of District Peshawar,

Pakistan” is solely my research work with no significant contribution from any other person. Small contribution/help wherever taken has been duly acknowledged and that complete thesis has been written by me.

I understand the zero-tolerance policy of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) and the University of Peshawar towards plagiarism. Therefore, I as an author of the above titled thesis declare that no portion of my thesis has been plagiarized and any material used as reference is properly referred/cited.

I undertake that if I am found guilty of any formal plagiarism in the above titled thesis even after award of PhD degree, the University of Peshawar reserves the rights to withdraw/revoke my PhD degree and that Higher Education Commission (HEC) and the University of Peshawar have the right to publish my name on the HEC/University website on which names of students are placed who submitted plagiarized thesis.

Student/Author Signature: ______

Name: Akhtar Munir

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List of Tables and Figures

List of Tables

Table 5.1: Sample Size and Stakeholder Group

Table 6.1: Support and non-support of participants by position

Table 6.2: Age and attitude of participants towards corporal punishment

Table 6.3: Gender and attitudes of participants towards corporal punishment

List of Figures

Figure 2.1: Model of Social Causes of Corporal Punishment

Figure 2.2: Effects of Corporal Punishment on child and his/her Behaviour

Figure 5.1: Variation in Information Power

Figure 5.2: Stages of Discussion in In-depth Interviews

Figure 8.1: An Explanaotory Ecological Framework for the Perpetuation of Corporal

Punishment in Schools in

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Table of Contents

Abstract………………………………………………………………………...i

Dedication…………………………………………………………………….iii

Acknowledgment……………………………………………………………..iv

Author’s Declaration………………………………………………………….vi

Plagiarism Undertaking………………………………………………………vii

List of Tables and Figures…………………………………………………...viii

Chapter 1: Introduction…………………………………………………………….01

1.1 Preamble…………………………………………………………………...1

1.2 Definitions of Key terms…………………………………………………..2

1.3 Statement of the Problem………………………………………………….4

1.4 Justification and Significance of the Study………………………………..6

1.5 Research Context: Pakistan………………………………………………..7

1.6 Research Context: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa………………………………...10

1.7 Research Context: Peshawar……………………………………………..12

1.8 Structure of the thesis…………………………………………………….14

Chapter 2: Conceptual Framework of Corporal Punishment in Schools……….17

2.1 Preamble………………………………………………………………….17

2.2 Defining Corporal Punishment…………………………………………...19

2.3 Factors Responsible for the Practice of Corporal Punishment…………...23

2.4 Negative Impacts of Corporal Punishment on Children…………………29

2.5 Positive Impacts of Corporal Punishment on Children…………………..37

2.6 Ineffectiveness of Corporal Punishment…………………………………41

2.7 The Islamic perspective on Corporal Punishment………………………..43

2.8 Corporal Punishment in a Human Rights Perspective…………………...45

2.9 Summary…………………………………………………………………50

Chapter 3: Prevalence of Corporal Punishment in Pakistan and Government’s Approach…………………………………………………………………………….52

3.1 Preamble………………………………………………………………….52

3.2 The Dilemma of Education in Pakistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa……...52

3.3 The Prevalence of Corporal Punishment in Pakistan…………………….59

3.4 Prohibiting Corporal Punishment in Pakistan: An overview of the Government Approach……………………………………………………….65

3.5 Summary…………………………………………………………………73

Chapter 4: Theoretical Framework………………………………………………..75

4.1 Preamble………………………………………………………………….75

4.2 Choice Theory……………………………………………………………76

4.2.1 Application of Choice Theory to Corporal Punishment………..81

4.3 Attachment Theory……………………………………………………….82

4.3.1 Application of Attachment Theory to Corporal Punishment…..85

4.4 Ecological Systems Theory……………………………………………....85

4.4.1 Ecological System Theory, Corporal Punishment and Child Protection…………………………………………………………….87

4.5 Summary…………………………………………………………………88

Chapter 5: Research Context and Methodology………………………………….90

5.1 Preamble………………………………………………………………….90

5.2 Research in Context……………………………………………………...90

5.3 Purpose of the study……………………………………………………...92

5.4 Universe and Population of the study……………………………………93

5.5 Aims and Objectives of the study………………………………………..95

5.6 Research questions of the study………………………………………….95

5.7 Research Design and Methodology………………………………………95

5.7.1 Cross sectional study…………………………………………...97

5.7.2 Sampling………………………………………………………..98

5.7.3 Sampling Procedure……………………………………………99

5.7.4 Sample Size…………………………………………………...102

5.8 The study population and Sample………………………………………105

5.8.1 Teachers…………………………………………………...... 105

5.8.2 Parents………………………………………………………...106

5.8.3 Child Psychologists…………………………………………...106

5.8.4 Religious Scholar……………………………………………..106

5.8.5 Non-government Organizations Workers…………………….107

5.9 Tool of Data collection………………………………………………….107

5.9.1 In-depth interviews……………………………………………108

5.9.2 Field notes and observation…………………………….……..110

5.9.3 Analysis of documents………………………………………..111

5.10 Data collection process……………………………………………...…112

5.11 Data Analysis……………………………………………………….…113

5.11.1 Discourse Analysis……………………………………..……114

5.12 Ethical Consideration………………………………………………….117

5.12.1 Informed Consent……………………………………………118

5.12.2 Anonymity and Confidentiality…………………………..….118

5.13 Validity and Reliability……………………………………………...... 119

5.14 Limitations of the Study…………………………………………….....121

5.15 Summary………………………………………………………………122

Chapter 6: Participants views about Corporal Punishment...... 124

6.1 Preamble………………………………………………………………...124

6.2 Demographic Information of the participants…………………………..124

6.3 Attitude and Beliefs of Corporal punishment: Support vs Non- support……………………………………………………..………………..129

6.4 Nature and Extent of Corporal Punishment in Schools………………....136

6.5 What leads to the practice of Corporal Punishment in Schools?...... 140

6.6 Stakeholders Perceptions of School Discipline…………………………147

6.7 Psycho-Social and Physiological Impacts on Children……………...... 153

6.8 Parental Position on Corporal Punishment……………………….……..166

6.9 Islamic Perspective on Practicing Corporal Punishment…………….....168

6.10 Legislative Measure for Eliminating Corporal Punishment……….….174

6.11 NGO’s Role for Eliminating Corporal Punishment………………...... 180

6.12 How to deal with Corporal Punishment?...... 183

6.13 Summary………………………………………………………………187

Chapter 7: Findings from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in a Global Context………..189

7.1 Preamble………………………………………………………………...189

7.2 Corporal punishment around the world and in Pakistan: Support vs non- support………...... 189

7.3 The causative factors of corporal punishment around the world and Pakistan……………………………………………………………………..193

7.4 Long Term Compliance: Physiological, Psychological and Sociological impacts of corporal punishment on children…...... 200

7.5 Short Term Compliance: Obedience, Classroom Management and Academic Performance………………...... 206

7.6 Practice of Corporal Punishment: Discipline, Class Management and School Environment………………………………………………………...208

7.7 The concept of legality and illegality related to the practice of Corporal Punishment………………………………………………………………….210

7.8 Corporal Punishment in Schools of Pakistan and the Role of Non- Government Organizations for its Abolishment…………………………....212

7.9 Summary………………………………………………………………..214

Chapter 8: Theoretically Positioning Participant’s Perspectives………………216

8.1 Preamble………………………………………………………………...216

8.2 Choice theory, child choices and corporal punishment…………………216

8.3 Attachment theory, disorganized attachment and child behaviour……..221

8.4 Ecological systems theory and child protection………………………...223

8.5 Summary………………………………………………………………..228

Chapter 9: How to Bring About the Change?...... 230

Step One: Establishing a Sense of Urgency………………………………...232

Step Two: Creating the Guiding Coalition………………………………….233

Step Three: Developing a Vision and Strategy……………………………..234

Step Four: Communicating the Change Vision through Volunteers………..234

Step Five: Empowering Broad-based Action by Removing the Barriers…..235

Step Six: Generating Short Term Wins……………………………………..242

Step Seven: Consolidating Gains and Producing More Change……………242

Step Eight: Anchoring new Approaches in the Culture or Institutional Change………………………………………………………………………243

Summary……………………………………………………………………243

References………………………………………………………………………….245

Appendix-A: A Copy of Participant Information Document……………………….279

Appendix-B: A Copy of Informed Consent Form………………………………….281

Appendix-C: A Copy of the Interview Guide………………………………………283

Appendix-D: Codes used for the Data Collection/Analysis Process……………….293

Chapter 1

Introduction

1.1 Preamble

Pakistan came into inception on August 14, 1947. Despite of the fact that almost six decades have been passed to its inception, Pakistan has struggled to achieve the desired level of development in various fields; particularly in health, education, social welfare services and technological advancement. Among these institutions education is an important one, particularly with respect to personal development of an individual and human resource development for the state. Education is a key indicator of sustainable development for every nation. The Government of Pakistan has embraced an

“education for all” approach and adopted various strategies to achieve the Millennium

Development Goal (MDG) 2 for universal primary education for all by 2015

(Government of Pakistan, 2013a). Progress towards universal primary education has been measured through three indicators i.e. primary enrolment rates, primary education completion rates and adult literacy rates. In 1990/91, the primary enrolment rate was

46 percent and the Government of Pakistan set a target to achieve 100 percent by 2015 to meet the MDG. However, over the last 15 years, the primary enrolment rate has only increased by 10 percent (Government of Pakistan, 2013b). The high rate of illiteracy is exacerbated by the lack of access to schools and inappropriate educational facilities, and the dual educational system, as well as poverty, unemployment, the negative role of religious leaders and the recent wake of terrorism. Another reason posited for the high rate of illiteracy is the practice of corporal punishment in schools, the topic of the current study.

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1.2 Definitions of Key terms

The definitions and description of some of the key words used in this study are as follows:

1.2.1 Corporal Punishment

Corporal punishment or physical punishment of children is a universal phenomenon.

Different scholars define corporal punishment according to their knowledge and experience about the issue whilst every state has their own legal definition of corporal punishment. Watson and Skinner (2004:76) quoting Straus (1994) defined corporal punishment as “Corporal punishment is the use of physical force with the intention of causing a child to experience pain, but not injury, for the purpose of correcting or controlling the child’s behaviour.”

1.2.2 Child Maltreatment

Child maltreatment is a hotly debated issue across the world, with many definitions changing across time and place. Child maltreatment can be defined as “any recent act or failure to act resulting in imminent risk of serious harm, death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation of a child by parent or a caretaker

(including out-of-home care providers) who are responsible for the child’s welfare”

(Scannapieco and Connell-Carrick, 2005:11) while World Health Organization (WHO) defined child maltreatment as “Child maltreatment is the abuse and neglect that occurs to children under 18 years of age. It includes all types of physical and/or emotional ill- treatment, sexual abuse, neglect, negligence and commercial or other exploitation,

2 which results in actual or potential harm to the child’s health, survival, development or dignity in the context of a relationship of responsibility, trust or power. Exposure to intimate partner violence is also sometimes included as a form of child maltreatment”

(Miller-Perrin and Perrin, 2013: 17).

1.2.3 Child Neglect

Child neglect is defined as “the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development” (Munro, 2008:49)

1.2.4 Physical Abuse

Physical abuse may be defined as “an act that may result in pain, injury and/or impairment” (Rodriguez and Benton, 2004:694).

1.2.5 Child Protection

For this study I have adopted the United Nations International Children's Emergency

Fund (UNICEF) definition of child protection which uses the term ‘child protection’ to refer to preventing and responding to violence, exploitation and abuse against children

– including commercial sexual exploitation, trafficking, child labour and harmful traditional practices, such as female genital mutilation/cutting and child marriage”

(UNICEF, 2006:1).

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1.2.6 Child Rights

Keeping in view the Pakistani context I have adopted the Child Rights Information

Network (2009:1) definition of child rights which stated that “Children's rights are about treating children with the equality, respect and dignity to which they are entitled, not because they are the “adults of tomorrow”, but because they are human beings today”.

1.2.7 Child Welfare

To define child welfare, I have adopted Child Welfare Information Gateway (2012: 1) definition which stated that “Child welfare is a continuum of services designed to ensure that children are safe and that families have the necessary support to care for their children successfully”.

1.3 Statement of the Problem

In Pakistan, there are approximately 7.5 million children aged 5-16 years out of school, while in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 34 percent of children aged 5-16 years

(approximately 2.5 million) are out of school. Of the children enrolled in school, 36 percent drop out before finishing their primary education and the dropout rate of 43 percent for girls is much higher than 29 percent for boys. The factors claimed to be responsible for this situation are lack of active parents-teachers association, lack of interest from both the parents and the teachers, unemployment, poverty, misinterpretation of religion about secular education, and the practice of corporal punishment in schools (Alif Ailaan, 2014).

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The practice of corporal punishment clearly reveals the low social status and lack of power of children within Pakistan society and schools. It is generally believed that children have not attained the maturity level and therefore are not in a position to take proper decisions in their lives. Children require guidance of adults including their teachers. In this context, the corporal punishment exercised by teachers in schools is considered as a means for enhancing the wellbeing of children in future (UNICEF,

2001). Researchers have shown that corporal punishment develops hatred in children towards school and teacher, negative impacts on child learning and motivation and the personality development of the child i.e. promoting the development of anger, aggression, anxiety, mental health issues and violence in children in the long term

(Gershoff et al., 2015). Besides this, the practice of corporal punishment also develops a ‘culture of violence’ in the society (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

Alternatively, corporal punishment is believed to be beneficial to children. In a study conducted in Pakistan by Alif Ailaan (2014), more than 70 percent of teachers surveyed were of the opinion that corporal punishment is useful. Factors that influence teacher’s ability to work effectively and use corporal punishment as a mean of discipline are: overcrowded classrooms, multi-grade teaching, low quality textbooks and the lack of infrastructure and equipment (Daily Dawn, 2014).

It has been observed that the use of corporal punishment in schools has not been taken seriously either by the government or by social activists in this field. Corporal punishment is rarely discussed in the print and electronic media and the Non-

Governmental Organization (NGO) sector has exploited it as a mean of attracting

5 foreign funds. To what extent the government, the parents, teachers, religious scholars and the NGO sector are sincere to completely eliminate the use of corporal punishment is not known. This study will take into account the views of various stakeholders on the use and elimination of corporal punishment and will suggest research based policy recommendations for the elimination of corporal punishment in schools in Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa province and more widely across Pakistan.

1.4 Justification and Significance of the Study

As a social institution, school plays an important role in child socialisation and personality development and the use of corporal punishment in schools, as I will go on to show, can have a deleterious impact on a child’s learning and achievement leading to longer term consequences in later life stages. However, banning corporal punishment is not prioritised by the Government of Pakistan. Corporal punishment is also regarded as a right of elders to correct the behaviour of the young in Pashtun1 culture. Since very little research has previously been undertaken on this area in Pakistan, this study aims to contribute to filling this gap in knowledge. This study will focus on the practice of corporal punishment up to secondary school2 level in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. My aim is to fill a gap between the theory and practice of corporal punishment leading to research based policy recommendations to deal with the problem of corporal punishment practiced in the schools of Pakistan.

1 The Pashtun’s are an ethnic group living in Afghanistan and Pakistan that form the majority of the population in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. They use language and follow a traditional set of ethics guiding individual and communal conduct, known as . 2 In Pakistan schooling is in 3 categories i.e. Primary which is from play group to 5th class, middle which is from 6th to 8th class and secondary or high which is from 9th to 10th class.

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1.5 Research Context: Pakistan

Pakistan got independence from British colonialism on August 14, 1947 while the word

‘Pakistan’ was coined by Rehmat Ali an unknown student of Cambridge University at that time. According to him Pakistan will be composed of Punjab, North West Frontier

Province (Now known as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), , Baluchistan and Kashmir because these areas were having Muslim population in majority (Munir, 1980). Besides the four provinces and Kashmir Pakistan also had tribal areas known as Federally

Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA) and Provincially Administrated Tribal Areas

(PATA). FATA is composed of seven agencies known as Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber,

Orakzai, Kurram, North Waziristan and South Waziristan while PATA is composed of

Frontier Regions (FR’s) known as FR Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu, Laki Marwat, Dera

Ismail Khan and Tank administrated by the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

(Hassan, 2008).

Pakistan is not like the other countries of the world; its creation is on the basis of religion in order to provide a homeland for the Muslim’s of British India. Initially

Pakistan was divided into two parts i.e. East and West Pakistan which were separated from each other by 1600 kilometres of Indian territory. In December 1971, modern

Pakistan came into being after the separation of East Pakistan now known as

Bangladesh, following a civil war from 1947 to 1971 (Burki, 2006).

Pakistan has four neighbours; in the east it has China, in the south India, in the north

Afghanistan and in the northwest, Iran. The country of Pakistan has an area of 796,000 square kilometres and a land border of 6,159 kilometres in which it shared a border of

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580 kilometres with China, 909 kilometres with Iran, 2240 kilometres with India and the longest 2430 kilometres with Afghanistan. Pakistan has a coastline of 1046 kilometres (Burki, 2006).

Pakistan population was 132.35 million in 1998 with 68.87 million male and 63.48 million female on the basis of 1998 census while in 2015 the country population was estimated as 191.71 million with 99.04 million male and 92.67 million female (State

Bank of Pakistan, 2016). The official languages of Pakistan are Urdu and English while the national dress is Shalwar Qameez (Buck, 2013).

Source: Google Maps

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Politically Pakistan remained in the hands of army dictators for almost 40 years of its independence due to the internal conflicts among the provinces and militancy domain.

Currently the country has a democratic set up and a prime minister running the country

(Nawaz, 2011). The military dominated the country where Field Marshal Ayub Khan remained from October 1958 to June 1962 as the head of the country, General Yahya

Khan from March 1969 to December 1971, General Zia-ul-Haq from July 1977 to

December 1985 and General Pervez Musharraf from October 1999 to August 2008

(Rizvi, 2008).

The socio-economic situation of the country is not so encouraging and is slow in pace.

Pakistan was ranked as on 141st position in Human Development Index (HDI) out of

182 states in 2009. Pakistan is gradually transforming from an agricultural economy to a modern industrial state. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country showed progress in the 2000s with a growth rate of 7%. Currently, Pakistan GDP is 167 billion

US dollars which makes it the 48th largest economy in the world and the second largest economy of South Asia (National Commission for Human Development, 2012). It is a developing country with a growth rate of 4.24% for the year 2014-15 while in 2015-16 it has been reported as 4.71% but the country needs a higher growth rate to achieve the development goal, a minimum of 7% is required for that purpose (Serfraz, 2017).

Pakistan has continental type climate seasons. It generally faces a deficiency in rainfall despite being a monsoon region. The country has an average rainfall of 76 to 127 centimetres in different parts of the country. Pakistan has mainly four seasons; a cold season from December to March, a hot season from April to June, a monsoon season

9 from July to September and post monsoon from October to November (Heiden, 2012).

Pakistan is a paradise for mountain climbers. Five out of the fourteen highest mountains of the world are in Pakistan; K-2 is 28,250 feet and 2nd highest in the world, Nanga

Parbat 26,600 feet, Hidden peak 26,469 feet, Broad Peak 26,400 feet and Gasherbrum with 26,352 feet (Mohiuddin, 2007).

1.6 Research Context: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was formally known as the North West Frontier Province

(NWFP). It consists of two parts; settled areas which have 26 districts and Frontier

Regions (FR’s) which are six (discussed earlier). The people of both the settled and FR are Pashtun’s. According to the 1998 census the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa population was approximately 17.7 million (Mehboob, 2011). In 2009 the population of Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa was approximately 18 million which makes it the 3rd largest province in the country on the basis of population growth (Government of NWFP, 2009).

The province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lies between the 31o 4/ and 36o 57/ north while

69o 16/ and 74o 7/ in the east. The extreme length of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is 408 miles and the extreme breath is 279 miles. It covers an area of approximately 38, 665 square miles (Ahmad, 1991).

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is surrounded by Afghanistan in the north and north-west, on the north-east it had northern areas and Azad Kashmir, Punjab in the east while in the south

10 it had District Dera Ismail Khan (Punjab) and in the west by FATA which is adjacent with Afghanistan (Baig, 2009).

Source: Google Maps

The province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa suffered from terrorism which had negative impacts on the social and cultural life of the people. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the land of Pashtun’s and Pashto is the common language of the province though some other languages like and Persian are also spoken here. The province had the biggest tribal society of the world. It provides a passage for trade between the east and west

(Keengwe et al., 2014). Pashtun wear Shalwar Qameez as their traditional dress. These are usually in different colours but the same colour is used for both the Shalwar and

Qameez. Besides the Shalwar Qameez women also wear Shal or Chador. The Burqa

11 culture in the province still prevailed particularly in rural areas where women wear

‘Shuttle-cock burqa’ (Buck, 2013).

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the poverty level is very high relative to other parts of the country at 42% of the local population, which is 5-7% higher than the other parts in the country. The whole of the province is badly affected by the era of terrorism which caused standards of living to go down (Puri, 2012). Out of the 58.7 million people living below the poverty line in Pakistan 32% are in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Malik, 2015).

Though it is also a fact that the economy of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has expanded 3.6 times from 1972-73 to 2004-05 (Siddiqi, 2014).

1.7 Research Context: Peshawar

Peshawar is one of the most ancient cities of Pakistan and is currently the capital of

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, located to the north-west of Pakistan. It is 160 kilometres west to the Pakistan capital Islamabad. Peshawar had a very rich history, witnessing the rise and fall of different civilizations, including the , Persian, Greek, Buddhist,

Kushan, Afghan, Mughal, Sikh and British before the independence of Pakistan (Al-

Hasan Systems, 2015). Spread over an area of 1257 square kilometres (Nadiem, 2007),

Peshawar is historically known as “The Frontier Town” as it is located in front of the world’s famous (Dani, 2002). It was also known as the ‘City of Flowers”

(Nadiem, 2007).

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Geographically Peshawar is surrounded by District Charsadda in north, in the east it had District Nowshera, in the south FR Peshawar while Khyber and Mohmand agencies in the west. District Peshawar had an estimated population of 2,564,000 persons in

2004-05 while in the 1998 census it was 2,019,000 persons (Government of NWFP,

2009). In 2015 the Peshawar estimated population had grown to 3,685,634 (Al-Hasan

Systems, 2015). More than 99% of Peshawar population are Muslim. It serves as a rich socio-economic, cultural and political place and capital for Pashtun’s (USAID, 2009).

Peshawar remained not only a key place in the Soviet-Afghan war of 1979 but also, after 9/11, of the United States of America (USA) attack on Afghanistan. It served as a place for both the Mujahideen (Muslim Religious Fighters) and Muhajireen (Refuges) and remained a point of attention for the world (Nadiem, 2007).

Source: Google Maps

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The winter season starts from mid-November to the end of March while summer is from May to September. Summer temperature is from 25o C to 40o C mean minimum while in winter it ranges from 4o C to 18.35o C mean minimum (Al-Hasan Systems,

2015). Administratively Peshawar has been divided into four towns which are further divided in 92 union councils. These 92 union councils have 279 Mauzas (Revenue

Villages) of which 236 are rural, 15 urban and 28 partly urban. Peshawar has one tehsil3 and 30 police stations (Al-Hasan Systems, 2015).

1.8 Structure of the Thesis

This thesis is divided into nine chapters in order to provide a clear and precise understanding of every segment of the study.

Chapter One

Chapter one is an introduction to the study. This chapter describes the problem the study addresses and justification and significance of the study. Some of the key terms used in the study are defined along with a short description about the research context in

Pakistan.

Chapter Two

Chapter two is about the existing literature on the issue of corporal punishment. This chapter describes the causative factors of corporal punishment, its negative and positive

3 A tehsil is an administrative division in Pakistan. It is an area of land with a city or town that serves as its administrative centre, with possible additional towns, and usually a number of villages.

14 impacts on the children. This chapter also provides an analysis of different cultural dimensions, including Islamic and Human Rights perspectives.

Chapter Three

Chapter three is reviews some of the problems of education and the prevalence of corporal punishment in schools in Pakistan. It describes the legislative measures of the government that currently deal with the issue of corporal punishment.

Chapter Four

The theoretical framework for the study is introduced in this chapter, including Choice

Theory, Attachment Theory and Ecological System Theory.

Chapter Five

Chapter five describes the methodology of the research, the purpose of the study, universe and population, aims and objectives and research questions. This chapter further describes the research design and methods, the study population and sample, ethical considerations, issues of validity and reliability and limitations.

Chapter Six

Chapter six presents an analysis of the participants responses. This chapter has given a short description about the demographic information of the participants. Participant’s views are presented in terms of support and non-support, type and extent of corporal

15 punishment encountered, impacts on children and school environment, parent’s and non-government organization’s roles in dealing with the issue of corporal punishment,

Islamic teachings and legislation over the issue and suggestions for the elimination or minimization of corporal punishment in schools.

Chapter Seven

Chapter seven analyses the findings of this study in the context of previous studies. This analysis is similarly framed in terms of support and non-support, factors responsible for the practice of corporal punishment, negative and positive impacts on children, school environment, the concept of Islamic teachings and legislation over the issue and the role of non-government organizations in dealing with the issue of corporal punishment.

Chapter Eight

Chapter eight draws a link between the theoretical framework of the study with the participants opinions. Choice theory, attachment theory and ecological systems theory were analysed with respect to the findings from this study.

Chapter Nine

Chapter nine provides research based policy recommendations, underpinned by a

Theory of Change model, to make suggestions for the elimination or minimization of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan.

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Chapter 2

Conceptual Framework of Corporal Punishment in Schools

“Hitting People is wrong, and children are people too”

(Save the Children, 2003)

In this chapter I analyse previous research and philosophical positions on corporal punishment, including literature that provides support and non-support, reviews negative and positive impacts on children, ineffectiveness of corporal punishment, and different cultural perspectives over the issue.

2.1 Preamble

The purpose of every society is to make their citizens functional and contributing as per the law of the country. Child development and socialisation are key factors in this endeavour.

For effective child rearing and discipline its techniques are of importance. One disciplinary practise is that of corporal punishment, the effectiveness of which as a form of discipline, has been debated over decades. On one side, the negative impacts of corporal punishment on children are accentuated while the other side is related to not obeying the authority by the children, anti-social behaviours and not following the religious teachings for discipline

(Andrew and Stewart, 2002). Children are considered as the future of any nation and without giving them proper attention development cannot be achieved. Sustainable development needs qualified masses and quality education is always a priority. For the development of a child cooperative family environment, good peer group and effective schooling is also necessary. In addition to the family, the school experience can have positive impacts on psycho-social and personal development in childhood. Schools are

17 considered as an agent of socialization and teachers play an important role in building the child and the nation (Naz et al., 2011). The practice of corporal punishment has emerged as a worldwide phenomenon and a topic of discussion. Several countries have now developed policies and laws banning corporal punishment not only in schools but in other places such as homes and work places (Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children, 2015). However, in some countries, corporal punishment continues to be practiced where the law against it is not available or not implemented completely.

Supporters of corporal punishment hold the position that it is an effective way to maintain obedience, respect and discipline while on the other side opponents state that it has negative impacts on children including low participation in class, drop-outs from school, poor academic achievements, reduced motivation to attend school and mental health issues.

However, there is little research, particularly longitudinal research, available in developing countries to enable the linking of corporal punishment with poor cognitive development and negative mental well-being (UNICEF, 2015). The practice of corporal punishment has taken more severe forms in schools as compared to its practice in most homes. In schools, the most common practice is paddling which means hitting the children buttocks with a wood stick or paddle (Gershoff et al., 2015). In secondary schools around the globe various types of corporal punishment have been practiced. Although it has been banned in

Australia, most of Europe, Canada and South Africa over the last few decades, it is still practiced in some parts of Africa, Asia and United States (Cheruvalath and Tripathi, 2015).

Gudyanga et al., (2014) reported that some students do not complete their primary education in the world due to corporal punishment and the ratio is much higher in schools where the teachers firmly believe that its practice is the most effective way in controlling the student behaviour and to discipline them. Despite increasing awareness about the

18 negative effects of corporal punishment its practice is still a widely known and acceptable phenomenon in the world (Romano et al., 2013).

This chapter will examine the empirical literature on the practice of corporal punishment; though the children under study have been punished in various places including homes, workplaces and schools as this study is only focusing on corporal punishment in schools the issue will be examined in terms of the school environment. The evidence-based opinions of different researchers in terms of opposing and supporting its practice will be discussed. Corporal punishment will also be discussed in Islamic and human rights perspectives but before going into detailed discussion, various definitions of corporal punishment are reviewed.

2.2 Defining Corporal Punishment

Corporal punishment has been considered as the part of education for discipline and learning since ancient Greece (Gershoff et al., 2015). It has received the support of law and religious teachings for thousands of years around the globe (Society for Adolescent

Medicine, 2003). The acceptable and legal definition of corporal punishment may differ from country to country and its form also depends on the culture of a particular country

(Watson and Skinner, 2004).

Turner (2002:15) provides a detailed definition of corporal punishment as:

“the administration by a recognized figure upon a recognized subordinate to some level

of physical pain for the purpose of causing the latter to suffer for an offense or inflicting

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a penalty for an offense. Further, it will be supposed that punishment in the context of

corporal punishment has a morally, legally and politically acceptable purpose; to get

the offender to avoid engaging in ‘bad’ behaviour.”

Gershoff et al., (2015:02) have given a quite clear and precise definition of corporal punishment; that is, “the deliberate infliction of physical pain by hitting, paddling, spanking, slapping or any other physical force used as a means of discipline”. Though there may be differences in terminologies used in defining corporal punishment, each academician and scholar attempts to have a precise definition; for example, it has also been defined as “a form of physical punishment or force intended to cause some degree of pain or discomfort for discipline, correction, control, and changing behaviour or in the belief of educating or bringing up the child” (Mohiuddin et al., 2012:02).

Straus and Donnelly (2005:03) defined corporal punishment as “the use of physical force with the intention of causing a child to experience pain, but not injury, for the purpose of correcting or controlling the child’s behaviour”. The sentence “pain, but not injury” enables differentiation between physical abuse and corporal punishment; the issue of corporal punishment is a publicly tolerable phenomenon as compare to the issue of physical abuse.

Gershoff (2002) similarly makes this distinction between corporal punishment and physical abuse. However, the line between pain and injury is not clear cut; it has also been observed that the majority of child physical abuse cases are due to the practice of corporal punishment as the adult’s loss control over their anger (Gil, 1979 and May-Chahal et al.,

2006). On a similar note, Trocme et al., (2013) reported that corporal punishment is likely

20 to increase the likelihood of child physical abuse as teachers are usually untrained in anger management and are unable to control their violent punishment.

Corporal punishment was defined by UNICEF (2015:07) as “any punishment in which physical force is used and intended to cause some degree of pain and discomfort, however light. Most involved hitting the children with a hand or with an implement”. In this definition the term ‘light’ has been used which means light punishment for children which minimises the risk of physical harm to the child.

To make a distinction between the corporal punishment and school corporal punishment,

Gagnon et al., (2014:03) provide a more explicit definition. According to them, school corporal punishment is “a discipline method in which a supervising adult deliberately inflicts pain upon a youth in response to the youth’s unacceptable behaviour”. Corporal punishment is mainly administrated by the teacher or head teacher of the school and it takes place in a variety of settings such as the classroom, main hall or the head teacher’s office

(Gershoff et al., 2015).

Corporal punishment may be defined differently by various scholars and academicians but it can simply be defined as the practice of physical power with the purpose of punishing the misbehaviour of the children through the experience of pain. Three points of view are availing about corporal punishment; pro-corporal, anti-corporal and conditional corporal punishment. In pro-corporal punishment, a teacher holds the position that its practice is completely necessary in instilling desirable behaviours and minimizing anti-social behaviours in students. The anti-corporal punishment view is that corporal punishment has

21 strong negative impacts on children while in the conditional corporal punishment view it has been stated that its practice is neither negative or positive it largely depends on its occurrence and severity (Khan and Farooqi, 2014). The need to discipline children is a foundational assumption of contemporary childhoods and is generally accepted by families and schools, although there are some who dissent from this view (see, for example, the work of Alice Miller). Given this fundamental existence of belief in the importance of discipline, however, now a days the most important debate is on legitimate and illegitimate methods of discipline particularly focusing on the practice of corporal punishment (Parke,

2002).

The relationship between school discipline and academic performance is of national interest for every country and educationalists, teachers and parents are perennially concerned with discipline related problems (Naz et al., 2011). For the management of discipline various methods based on rewards and punishment has been introduced. Of all these methods, corporal punishment has arguably induced the largest debate due to its pros and cons

(Busienei, 2012).

Concluding the debate on the issue of defining corporal punishment we may simply state that it is the practice of physical power or force by an adult to control childhood behaviours that are deemed to be deviant in a given time or place with the aim of teach a child to behave in a socially and culturally acceptable way.

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2.3 Factors Responsible for the Practice of Corporal Punishment

For transforming the knowledge and culture to the next generation schools are viewed as an important institution, while in schools it is generally accepted that the role of a teacher as an educator as well as disciplinarian should not be undermined. The practice of corporal punishment in schools for the purpose of discipline has remained, both in the academia as well as in general public, a very controversial phenomenon (Lwo and Yuan, 2011).

Children around the globe have the right to be protected from all forms of violence including corporal punishment (UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC),

1989). However, children have continued to be punished on routine basis in the majority of countries both in homes and schools (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

Corporal punishment is a routine phenomenon in the lives of South Asian children both in home and school (UNICEF, 2001). Discussing the practice of corporal punishment from an ecological theory perspective (Bronfenbrenner, ref; WHO, 2001), it is of importance to first look at the individual level of both the teachers and the students and after that it is also correspondingly essential to look at the immediate community level (the school’s ethos and organisation) and the societal level, such as the cultural values that support the practice, legal statements and laws about corporal punishment and the beliefs of public citizens about its efficiency. Thus, we can say that the individual behaviours at the micro level and societal and cultural practices on the macro level minimize or maximize the possibility and exercise of corporal punishment (Breen et al., 2015).

Corporal punishment is mainly justified as being used for correcting the misbehaviour of a child, the reasons for which vary from student to student. Within the literature it is proposed

23 that its practice is mainly derived from two motives; non-conformity with the school norms and low academic performance. Corporal punishment in Asian countries is usually due to the poor performance in class and academic achievements while in developed countries or the West it is due to non-compliance with the social and school norms (Tiwari, 2013).

Several studies reveal that the rate of approval for corporal punishment is very high as a means of discipline technique. Over the last 30 years it has gained much attention due to growing awareness of its negative impacts on children and its close relationship to physical abuse indeed some maintain that corporal punishment is physical abuse in and of itself

(Durrant, 2005; Strauss ref). However, despite this the approval rate for its practice has not disappeared, although in some countries (such as the United Kingdom) it has dropped significantly (Cawson et al., 2000 and Douglas, 2006).

Historically, various factors contributed to the practice of corporal punishment in terms of child socialisation and character building. Firstly, in the earlier hunter-gathering tribes, violence and aggression were key factors for protection and survival due to which violent child rearing was a common phenomenon at that time. Secondly, certain branches of

Christianity also support corporal punishment of children. Thirdly, often children either with parents or teachers engage in minor level of conflict which escalate to the practice of corporal punishment either by the parents or teachers (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

Understanding teacher’s perceptions of corporal punishment is important; it is not the student’s behaviour per se that causes teachers to practice corporal punishment, it is the teacher’s perception and acceptance of corporal punishment as a solution which cause the practice. Several related social and cultural factors such as tradition, custom, familiarity,

24 legality, faith, lack of knowledge and teacher stress contribute to this perception (Save the

Children, 2010).

The issue of corporal punishment in schools clearly replicates and reinforces the low social status and lack of authority of in childhood. One hypothesis is that children are immature and they are unable to make a proper decision about their lives so adults have the right to make decisions on their behalf. This position is heightened in schools where teachers hold complete power and authority to transmit knowledge to the students and students are expected to respect, learn from and obey their teachers. In the process of learning teachers are considered as ‘subjects’ and students are as ‘objects’. In many schools, the teacher has complete authority to practice corporal punishment if the student fails to accomplish and learn. In this sense, the practice of corporal punishment is considered an essential component of education and significant for the child’s learning and development (UNICEF,

2001).

Durrant (2005) reported that the practice of corporal punishment by teachers may be due to the poor educational status of the teacher who is unable to convey their teaching in a positive way (see also Eamon, 2001). Although numerous contextual factors are associated with an increase in the practice of corporal punishment, if these factors also influence the teacher or the elder then this will heighten the risk of practicing it. Teachers make their own interpretation of a student’s behaviour, such that they may categorise it as intentional or unintentional or controllable or uncontrollable, which plays a vital role in how the child’s behaviour is responded to (Ateah and Durrant, 2005).

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The lack of accountability of teachers using violence against children in schools, overcrowded classrooms with insufficient infrastructure, poor quality education tools and untrained teachers increase the teacher’s anxiety and stress for which predispose to the practice of corporal punishment. Another important factor that may contribute to the practice of corporal punishment in South Asia are the ‘teacher-centered’ or ‘adult-centric’ teaching methods with minimum priority attributed to the child’s desires, skills and perception. Discipline in classrooms is achieved through keeping the children in a continuous state of fear. However, it has been proposed that the use of strict violent punishment has negative impacts on student learning and motivation in the school which has subsequent impacts in lowering achievement, rejection of education and finally increasing dropout rates from school (UNICEF, 2001).

Various studies report that different cultures have different approaches towards corporal punishment; some cultures approve while some disapprove of its practice (Durrant, 2005).

Culture is one of the most important contributory factors for its practice and it has been reported that corporal punishment is more common where people have a perception of it as normal practice (Salazar et al., 2014). The association between the practice of corporal punishment and culture is that corporal punishment is a learned phenomenon (McClure and

May, 2008). Ghate et al., (2003) report that the practice of corporal punishment is transmitted from one generation to another and the results of these studies present a clear picture of the phenomenon. They reveal that adults, either the teacher or the parent, who have been punished in childhood have the tendency to use corporal punishment on their own children or their students in future as corporal punishment. Straus (2010) reported that the “cultural spoillover” theory states that if a person received violence or corporal punishment in one sphere of life it will increase the probability of violence practiced by

26 them in another sphere of life. This transference has been posited as the main cause for the practice of corporal punishment as social norms support it and this is continued from one generation to another.

Menard (2013) reported that religion plays a key role in practicing corporal punishment and provides an ‘important culture distinction’ for its practice. Those parents or teachers who are more religious, consider it their duty and responsibility to discipline their children even by using corporal punishment. Gershoff (2010) reported that religious leaders or religiously inspired people practice it for the well-being of the child and consider it necessary for disciplinary purposes. Hart et al., (2005) report that the practice of corporal punishment may be due to multiple reasons such as approval by society and culture, self- experience of the perpetrator in childhood, adult anger reactions to the child due to conflict in response to child behaviour and stress on teacher (see also Straus ref who developed the

Conflict Tactics Scale based on the latter theory). Lwo and Yuan (2011) reported that in

Asian countries parents consider their children as property and ask teachers to deal with their children strictly. It is also considered as a responsibility of teachers to bring respect, patience and obedience in the children.

Gorea (2015) reported that factors responsible for the practice of corporal punishment are; lack of awareness among teachers about the law, its impacts on children in the life span, frustration and anxiety and work load.

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Thus, the corporal punishment of children is a multifaceted phenomenon. Following an

ecological framework (Bronfenbrenner, 1979 and Straus, 2010) Salazar et al., (2014)

identified a conceptual framework for its practice. The study reported proximal factors for

its practice include characteristics of the parents, teachers or any other caregiver, mezzo

factors are the combination of cultural beliefs and legal aspects while distal factors revolve

around inequalities and social stratification in communities (Figure 2.1).

Figure 2.1: Model of Social Causes of Corporal Punishment

(Examples of Direct and Indirect Causes)

DISTAL CAUSES MEZZO CAUSES PROXIMATE CAUSES

1. Legitimate Personal 1. CP Legally permitted 1. Advice to spank or Violence 2. Cultural norms criticism for not from 2. Less educated Less approving & family, friends,

humane society expecting CP neighbors. 3. War, govt, violence 3. Cultural belief CP: 2. Violence between CP 4. Punitive deity • Is necessary parents.

5. Inequality in society • Is harmless 3. Social stress, e.g; 6. Inequality in family 4. Violent • Unemployment 7. Agricultural & neighborbood • Many children industrial society 5. Experienced CP as a 4. Authoritarian child versus post child rearing. industrial 5. Immature Parents

6. Household composition

Feedback Paths

Adopted from Straus, A. M. (2010:10).

In summary, factors contributing to the practice of corporal punishment are; social and cultural acceptance, religious support, untrained and stressed teachers, workload on teachers and school environment can play a key role in this regard.

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2.4 Negative Impacts of Corporal Punishment on Children

Child abuse and corporal punishment are sometimes brought to public attention through

the media when child punishment causes severe injuries or sometimes death; this coverage

evokes emotion but these feelings are temporarily and there is little public debate on the

issue. However, until and unless there is no serious debate over the issue of corporal

punishment Governments will not consider changing law and social policy concerning its

practice (Turner, 2002).

Over the last hundred years researchers have examined the effectiveness of corporal

punishment in terms of maintaining the discipline and its negative impacts on children

(Gershoff and Bitensky, 2007) and in the last thirty years its practice has mainly been linked

with negative outcomes for children (Ateah and Durrant, 2005). However, despite the fact

that in the last two decades researchers have reported detrimental effects on children, its

practice, social acceptance and debate on rightfulness and effectiveness continues. Around

the globe more than one billion children aged 2-14 years receive corporal punishment for

disciplinary purposes on a routine basis, with a supporting attitude for its practice ranging

from 3% to 82% in the world (Stewart-Tufescu and Durrant, 2014). Because violence and

corporal punishment by teachers and parents is associated with profound harm, including

physical abuse, mental health issues or even sometimes death this is a public health issue

faced by the pediatricians, health workers and social workers (Lansford et al., 2014).

The debate on the issue of corporal punishment is usually founded on two lines of

argument. On one side it is based on its harmful effects on children including increases in

aggression, anti-social behaviours, psycho-social problems, poor cognitive development,

29 moral internalization and poor academic performance, while on the other its effectiveness

(as has been discussed above) in terms of child obedience, respect for authority, discipline and immediate compliance (Zolotor and Puzia, 2010). Ferguson (2013) reported that social scientists continue to work on the issue of corporal punishment and its outcomes for children concluding that it had quite negative impacts on cognitive development and internalizing and externalizing behavioural issues.

Cross cultural studies are rare although increasing (Gershoff et al., 2015). These studies showed that children are being punished, spanked and slapped across several countries on routine basis (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

Research on corporal punishment in schools is rare as compared to parental corporal punishment, therefore to gain insight into the possible effects of corporal punishment on children it is necessary to examine the effects of corporal punishment on children practiced by parents as well, given both teachers and parents are in positions of authority over the child. However, it is also the case that in the use of corporal punishment by teachers, other students may hear or watch the practice which can have impacts on a larger audience, especially if it is severe (Gershoff et al., 2015). McClure and May (2008) report that although the available literature predicts its practice in schools, the literature shows its practice in school is rare but the reality may be otherwise.

The alleged purpose of corporal punishment is to minimize anti-social behaviour among children but in the longer term it may have the opposite impact (Straus et al., 1997). The goal of corporal punishment by both teachers and parents is to decrease the occurrence of

30 undesirable behaviour and increase the likelihood of desirable or social behaviour (Grusec and Goodnow, 1994). However, a meta-analysis of 27 studies examined the link between corporal punishment, a decrease in anti-social behaviour and an increase in desirable behaviour, finding a strong negative correlation between them. More corporal punishment was associated with less occurrence of desirable behaviour and an increase in undesirable behaviour. The same study concluded that corporal punishment was associated with an increase in mental health problems, juvenile delinquency and criminal behaviours in later life, negative relationships between the child and teachers or parents and an increase in the physical abuse of the children by the adults (Gershoff, 2002). The relationship between corporal punishment and anti-social behaviour has developed a broad agenda for research.

Other studies examining this relationship similarly report that corporal punishment is used to instil immediate compliance in children and promote desirable behaviour, however it has been found to be ineffective in reducing inappropriate behaviour and it also teaches children to use physical force as an appropriate solution for resolving conflict (Grogan-Kaylor,

2004; Zoysa et al., 2006 and Gamez-Guadix et al., 2010).

Another outcome that is mostly related to corporal punishment is injury to the child, particularly when large wood paddles or sticks are used for this purpose (Block, 2013).

These injuries may be hematomas, damage to the nerves, damage to muscles and cracked or broken bones. Physical injuries in schools are constantly related to corporal punishment at the student individual level (Gershoff et al., 2015). Gershoff et al., (2015) also find that its practice increases physical health problems in children and negative relationships between children and teachers. Links have also been made with child physical abuse which can be due to the inappropriate and irrational practice of corporal punishment (Taylor et al., 2011).

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The psychological impacts of corporal punishment can be as harmful as physical harm or even more severe (Mthanti and Mncube, 2014). The link between corporal punishment and child aggression is mostly studied and particularly debated when referred to child rearing.

The majority of researchers conclude that its practice increases aggression and hostility among the children. It has been assumed that corporal punishment increases aggression among children as it models aggression. Experiencing corporal punishment in early childhood theoretically provides a justification for using violence in adult life (White and

Straus, 1981). Both teachers and parents hold the position that they use corporal punishment when they are confronted with child aggression, which means that corporal punishment will correct disruptive behaviour and aggression in children. But Gershoff’s meta-analysis

(2002) found that none of the research reported that corporal punishment decreases child aggression, but all the included studies found that the more the child is punished the severity of aggression increases (Gershoff, 2002). A number of longitudinal studies suggest a primary cause of adult aggression is facing aggression in the childhood. Children who are corporally punished are more likely to be physically aggressive in the adulthood (Eron et al., 1991). Dodge (1986) reported that this aggressive behaviour may be due to two reasons.

Firstly, the practice of corporal punishment will effect the social-cognitive development of the child and he/she will start accepting it as an effective means for solving inter-personal problems. Secondly, it will make children more supportive of using violence and they are likely to transfer its practice onto other people and things. The corporal punishment of children encourages them to learn that its practice is legitimized (Smith, 2006).

Students feel humiliation when they have been punished in front of other students. Some children report that watching someone else being punished makes them feel irritated, anxious and sad (Human Rights Watch and the ALLU, 2008). Teenagers whom suffered

32 from corporal punishment in childhood shows a high level of depression and thoughts and feelings of hopelessness and these continue into adulthood (Turner and Finkelhor, 1996).

Harsh physical punishment may also be associated with low self-esteem, drug misuse and suicidal attempts or thoughts particularly when the children perceives it as unjust, unacceptable and unpredictable (Holmes and Robins, 1987).

Corporal punishment causes anger, aggression and feelings of fear in children which has negative impacts on relationships between the child with the teacher or the parents as children start avoiding those people from whom they receive pain (Grusec and Goodnow,

1994). The socio-cultural perspective on child development states that children learn from social relationships which motivate them in learning and exploring. The practice of verbal methods for discipline based on explaining and reasoning are more fruitful for child cognitive development as compared to corporal punishment. Its practice hampers cognitive development as children stop exploring their physical and social world (Smith, 2006).

Asimaki et al., (2016) reported that the most common method for maintaining classroom discipline is corporal punishment as it is used for the purpose of obedience, discipline and learning process but negative impacts on the student-teacher relationships can further lead to negative relationships between the child and society at large. Corporal punishment is also associated with a great risk of children’s adjustment in the future. Aucoin et al., (2006) conducted a study in United State of America through stratified random sampling procedure on high risk children towards corporal punishment reported a negative association between both; receiving corporal punishment in childhood will create problems in later life including aggression towards others, anti-social behaviour and abuse of spouses or other people.

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Corporal punishment has found to be related to slower cognitive development in children aged between 2-4 and 5-9. This can lead to poorer academic performance which later results in school drop-outs (Save the Children, 2005). Corporal punishment may not promote positive moral values and will not teach children to adapt socially as often no verbal communication is involved and little advice or guidance is given for wrong-doings

(Smetana, 1997 and Straus and Paschall, 2009). Early child relationships with caregivers, parents, teachers and peers have an influence on learning and motivation. Murris (2012) in a study with sample of 400 students reported that corporal punishment not only causes fear and anxiety, behavioural, academic and physical side effects but also damage to the ego, feelings of humiliation, helplessness and loss, destructive behaviours and weakens attention throughout life.

In Pakistan children who have experienced corporal punishment in schools have poor academic performance. Students who had experienced severe corporal punishment usually did not come to school and later drop out. These students were also found to have feelings of aggression, hate, frustration and were more unforgiving compared with students who do not have this experience (Holden and Ashraf, 2016). Khoury-Kassabri et al., (2014) in a study on Arab kindergarten teachers from Israel through stratified sampling method using an self-reported, structured and synonymous questionnaire with a sample size of 86 participants and Naz et al., (2011) in a study using stratified sampling procedure with a sample of 360 participants using and interview schedule reported that the practice of corporal punishment having negative impacts on the academic achievements and performance of students and a lack of motivation towards school and learning. It creates an environment in schools which is unfavourable to learning, unproductive and punitive.

Children become depressed and anxious about the school. In Kohat, Pakistan the findings

34 of a research study reveal that the academic performance of those schools were low where corporal punishment is practiced as compared to those schools where it has not been practiced (Suleman et al., 2014). Corporal punishment has also been associated with poor moral internalization. Teachers are supposed to play a great role in the child moral internalization and they remain as a source of inspiration for the students but when they practice corporal punishment, watched by the students, children internalize the behaviour which has negative impacts on the child’s moral internalization and development (Downs,

2015). Ahmad et al., (2013) examined the association between corporal punishment and its effects on student’s motivation and learning. They conclude that the behaviour of the teacher plays a key role in the student’s learning and motivation. They further report that a majority of teachers in Pakistan use corporal punishment as a means of learning and motivation, but it has been proved by numerous studies (see above) that it has negative effects on these attributes which results in poor academic performance.

According to Holden and Ashraf (2016) the practice of corporal punishment promotes a

‘culture of violence’. They report that in countries where its practice is a routine phenomenon, children develop violent manifestations performed as harsh discipline and the approval of violence. They further reported that in those countries where corporal punishment is more prevalent the ratio of violent crimes are also high. When children are corporally punished they learn that it is a suitable way for resolving interpersonal problems and children model these violent strategies and practice them in later life with different people and situations (Graziano, 1994).

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In various cases if corporal punishment is too severe or frequent it may cause physical abuse (Vasta, 1982). Not only violating the basic child right’s to freedom from cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (UNCRC, 1989), different empirical studies report its association with a great range of problems in the later life (Xu et al., 2000).

As noted, the most comprehensive meta-analysis of the effects of corporal punishment was carried out by Gershoff (2002), and although this was based on the effects of corporal punishment on children by parents the model developed has application to corporal punishment in schools as the studies reviewed find that many of the impacts of school corporal punishment are the similar. The model explains corporal punishment and its impacts on child mediational process and behaviour. Figure 2.2 clearly explain the situation.

Figure 2.2: Effects of Corporal Punishment on child and his/her Behaviour

Adopted from Gershoff, T. E. (2002 : 552).

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Psychologists, paediatricians, teachers and social workers have not given due attention to the harmful impacts of corporal punishment on children in Pakistan despite the fact that a good amount of literature reports the association of corporal punishment with anti-social behaviours and physical aggression in the children (Straus et al., 1997). The literature supports the claim that the impacts of corporal punishment on children are largely negative; it can cause physical injury leading to physical abuse, aggression, frustration, anxiety, poor cognitive development, low participation in school and class, an increase in anti-social behaviour, hamper positive personality development and reducing academic achievements.

2.5 Positive Impacts of Corporal Punishment on Children

Corporal punishment has received support from religious, educational and legal doctrine for thousands of years. In western countries there is a saying “Spare the rod, spoil the child” while in Asia proverbs such as “A rod makes an obeying child” and “No rod, no good child” prevailed. Its practice in school is based on the need for child discipline and associated child rearing philosophies (Lwo and Yuan, 2011).

In order to control, reform or reshape child misbehaviour, the effectiveness of corporal punishment is still the most debated and contentious phenomenon in the world (Gudyanga et al., 2014). The objective of corporal punishment is to decrease undesirable behaviour, such as aggression, and increase the probability of desirable and social behaviour so that children may act socially if no elders are around them. Advocates of corporal punishment in schools hold the position that a ban on corporal punishment will increase the occurrence of delinquency and aggressive behaviour among students. For this argument to be upheld, that corporal punishment leads to a decrease in anti-social behaviour among students, the

37 relevant data needs to be examined but unfortunately little contemporary data is available

(Gershoff et al., 2015).

Wilson (2002) reported on the advantages of corporal punishment; according to him it is an easy and cheap way for administration in schools, it is most effective as no individual likes physical pain, and is thus an effective way for reforming and reshaping individual behaviour as a child will not repeat the same mistake due to the experience of physical pain, and it also has no enduring harm on whom it has been inflicted.

Some research favours the practice of corporal punishment in a mild way. Larzelere and

Kuhn (2005) in a meta-analysis of 26 studies reported that corporal punishment may be effective for children from 2-6 years. Another study found that spanking is beneficial as it teaches the children to respect the elders. The study further states that if the children were not spanked for their disrespect then they will become disrespectful and none-law abiding citizens or even violent in the future (Kazdin and Benjet, 2003). In a large scale national study on mothers with a sample of 1966 participants on the issue of spanking and behavioural problems found no correlation between them. The study reported that children who were spanked before the age of two years show the same behavioural issues as those who were not spanked and did not find any co-relation between the practice of spanking and behavioural issues in later life (Slade and Wissow, 2004). Baumrind et al., (2002) conducted a study with respect to Gershoff (2002) meta-analysis supported the practice of corporal punishment, according to them moderate or mild punishment is important for children with discipline problems because it instils discipline, respect and obedience in children. Holden and Ashraf (2016) reported that the practice of corporal punishment has

38 a single merit and that is immediate child compliance after the punishment. Zoysa et al.,

(2006) on a similar note states that its practice is only effective for the short-term compliance of children.

The study of Larzelere and Kuhn (2005) reported that some situations in which children were punished are not so harmful. The researchers hold the position that the outcome of corporal punishment depends on the environment and situation in which it has been practiced. The study further reported that corporal punishment is an effective way in raising respectful and obedient children and showed that the children show immediate obedience and respect after spanking.

Studies on the effects of spanking by caregivers found that they depend on the attachment relationship, if the caregiver accepts the child then the negative impacts will be mild compared to relationships in which the caregiver opposes the child. The study further reported that the child’s position such as family, sex, age and relationships also effects on his behavioural issues in later life (Kazdin and Benjet, 2003).

A meta-analysis of 70 studies conducted from 1961-2000 in United States of America reported that the practice of spanking did not cause any behavioural or psychological issues to the child (Paolucci and Violato, 2004). Taylor et al., (2011) reported that spanking was a common phenomenon with the past generation, the study further reported that past generations are more reliable, functional and respectful citizens of a country as compared with the new generation who either received very minimum or no spanking from their elders. Kazdin and Benjet (2003) reported that the practice of spanking has minimum

39 impacts on the children as compared to other punishments; loss of privilege, verbal punishment and grounding. The study showed that other forms of punishments have more harmful effects as compared with spanking.

Marcus (2014) reported that different qualitative studies showed that parents, teachers and students hold the position that corporal punishment is effective in achieving academic goals and correcting anti-social behaviour. Teachers or school heads use corporal punishment to maintain discipline and control the deviant behaviour of the children, as some students misbehave due to various reasons in order to discipline or control them corporal punishment is used. Corporal punishment has showed effectiveness in controlling the deviant behaviours and school discipline but it can only be used as a last resort (Gudyanga et al.,

2014). Suleman et al., (2014) reported that it is an effective and useful technique for strengthening the student’s academic performance. Newsom et al., (1983) reported that corporal punishment is effective in relation with the setting rules for a short period of time.

One study (Burnett, 1998) reported that children and adults both believe corporal punishment is effective in making the children obedient and responsible adults in the future, but this reflects attitudes rather than actual behaviours and impacts.

It can therefore be concluded that corporal punishment is associated with short term compliance, however most of these studies were not based on observational methods but rather on questionnaires and interviews with teachers and parents with no external validation of responses (Gershoff, 2002). Indeed, there is little data available on the effectiveness of corporal punishment of children in schools in the longer term. Supporters of corporal punishment mainly hold the position that its practice is beneficial in terms of

40 controlling the child anti-social behaviour and making the children obedient and respectful individuals.

2.6 Ineffectiveness of Corporal Punishment

Over the last seven decades psychologists researching the effectiveness of corporal punishment have concluded that its practice is ineffective in producing the desired behaviours changes and its practice is associated with long term psychological issues

(Zoysa et al., 2006).

One of the most important reason for corporal punishment ineffectiveness is that it fails to follow the situation in which the unwanted behaviour occurs, which according to the behaviourists4 must exist for the effectiveness of the punishment i.e. that it must be instant consistent and delivered immediately after any misbehaviour or targeted behaviour of the child. It is very difficult for a teacher to meet all these criteria when he/she punishes the child as usually the teacher is not present at the time when the child is misbehaving or doing anything wrong (Gershoff et al., 2015).

Secondly, corporal punishment teaches the child that they should behave properly when the threat of the punishment exists, but if this threat is gone then the children do not have any reason to behave properly (Gershoff et al., 2015). In short, it may be said that corporal

4 A behaviourist is a psychologist who subscribes to behaviourism, which is a behavioural approach to psychology that combines elements of philosophy, methodology and theory. It emerged methodologically in the early twentieth century as a reaction to "mentalistic" psychology, which often had difficulty making predictions that could be tested using rigorous experimental methods.

41 punishment is effective only for a short period of time and has less impact on the child’s unwanted behaviour in the long run.

Thirdly, corporal punishment cannot be effective as it results in physical pain and it is puzzling and contradictory for children to be beaten by those for whom they have great love and respect i.e. their parents and teachers. The negative effects outlined above, such as increased anxiety, irritation and grief are likely to result from this dissonance in the relationship between the child and the teacher which ultimately can have the effect of working against academic performance, the very aspect that the adult wishes to achieve

(Dobbs et al., 2006).

Lastly, from corporal punishment children learn that violence and aggression are the suitable way to control someone behaviour (Gershoff et al., 2015). The practice of corporal punishment promotes a culture of violence among children as through its practice children learn that the use of power is a suitable way to control others.

Scholars are of the opinion that the most suitable way for abolishing corporal punishment is to create awareness at the community level rather than a top-down approach on the grounds that if the people become aware of the negative consequences of corporal punishment they will stop hitting the children (Gershoff et al., 2015).

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2.7 The Islamic perspective on Corporal Punishment

The religion of Islam has provided protection to human beings and set the guidelines for their routine lives. It is a religion of humanity and the teachings of Islam focus on kindness and affection with women, children and all humankind. Those virtues which have been advocated by the Islamic concept of ‘Mercy’ is one of the most important among them.

Islam clearly states that parents and teachers must act with mercy in dealings with children and any punishment or harsh treatment of children contradicts the virtue of mercy which is advocated (Al-Saud, 2000 and Alanazi, 2008). The Holy Prophet (Peace be upon Him) placed emphasis on affection with children and said “Is there any one of us who does not show mercy to our children and respect our elderly people” (Hasan, 1993: 1443 and

Alanazi, 2008). On another occasion the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon Him) said “He who does not show mercy (towards his children) no mercy will be shown to him” (Khan, 1997:

1397 and Alanazi, 2008).

Though the religion of Islam mainly focuses on mercy and kindness with the children, it also permits the use of corporal punishment for the purpose of correcting or controlling child misbehaviour and developing the character and personality of the child. The logic behind this is to protect and prevent the child from falling into bad habits and anti-social behaviour (Al-Mutrik, 1999 and Alanazi, 2008). Corporal punishment is only mentioned in

Hadith5; the Holy Quran does not mention it in the whole text (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

The Holy Prophet (Peace be upon Him) once said “Teach your children to perform prayers at the age of seven and beat them if they do not do so by the age of ten” (Al-Nasser and

5 A Hadith is one of various reports describing the words, actions, or habits of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The term comes from Arabic meaning a "report", "account" or "narrative". Hadith are second only to the Quran in developing Islamic jurisprudence, and regarded as important tools for understanding the Quran and commentaries written on it.

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Darwish, 1991: 201). If we thoroughly look to this Hadith it clearly provides a gap for the advice and implementation of corporal punishment, it clearly states that advice should be given to the child at the age of 7 years for the purpose of prayers and punishment given to them at the age of 10 if they are not performing their prayers, which leaves a 3 years gap for children to change their behaviour in other ways. This can be through advice, guidance and discussion that helps the child to understand and learn better ways of acting.

Though Islam permits the use of corporal punishment, it is also a fact that the Shari’a

(Islamic Law) provides various rules for this (Al-Saud, 2000 and Alanazi, 2008). Some of the rules are as below: i. Corporal punishment may only be practiced if it is genuinely needed for disciplining

the child ii. The practice of corporal punishment may not cause severe physical or psychological

damage to the child iii. Its practice may not develop hatred or ill feelings in the child iv. Its practice may not cause the child to run away from home or educational

institutions i.e. school or madrassa v. A teacher can only practice it by the permission of the parents or the guardian vi. Its practice can only be limited to its genuine need vii. It should not be too severe that the child may not bear it viii. It can only be done by hands no stick or other object is allowed ix. The face, head and genitals of the child may be evaded x. The adult or teacher may not use corporal punishment due to his or her own anger

(Al-Qaarni, 2005 and Alanazi, 2008).

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To sum up the debate, it can be said that the teaching of Islam mainly focuses on child rearing and discipline with mercy and affection. At the same time, it also allows the practice of corporal punishment if necessary but with some clear restrictions. It can only be used as a last resort if other methods of discipline such as advice, guidance and motivational methods fail.

2.8 Corporal Punishment in a Human Rights Perspective

Relations between children and caregiving adults are presumed to be based on care, respect, support and nurture. However, in the context of corporal punishment, the disposition of some adults to be dominant and authoritative opens up the potential to make these relations violent, which reinforces the children status as dependent (Lombardo and Polonko, 2005).

Corporal punishment impacts directly and negatively on human dignity and the physical honour of a child making him or her as an ‘object’ which has to be dominated or controlled by the adults, which teaches the child to replicate these relations when they grow as an adult (Miller, 1990). As the research reviewed earlier in the chapter attests, frequent corporal punishment also has significant negative effects beyond the replication of violent caregiver relationships that can have significant impacts on mental health throughout the life course of citizens within which it is practiced. Holden and Ashraf (2016) propose that because its practice is potentially harmful it is a threat and a violation of child safety and rights.

Corporal punishment in the schools is still prevalent in the world despite the fact that the

United Nations Convention on the Rights of Child (UNCRC) states that it is against the convention and basic human rights and dignity of the individual (Mthanti and Mncube,

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2014). The practice of corporal punishment is therefore a fundamental and international human rights issue. In the majority of civil societies it is illegal to strike a person and children need special care and attention in this regard (Zolotor and Puzia, 2010). The practice of corporal punishment is a breach on personal or human dignity and on the physical integrity of a child under the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The principal that is included in all human rights law is the ‘Principal of Non-discrimination’ on the basis of age, sex, race etc. also provides protection to children from all forms of violence including corporal punishment. Besides, this the Universal Declaration of Human Rights provide and proclaims assistance and special care for children (Save the Children. 2005).

Over the last two decades trends have progressed internationally for the purpose of providing substitutes for outmoded child and adult relations. These changes have encouraged citizens to develop strategies for child rearing that provide an alternative to corporal punishment. The UNCRC, Universal Declaration on Human Rights, The

International Covenant on Political and Civil Rights and the United Nations Torture

Convention has supported the transition of children from the status of ‘property’ or

‘oppressed class’ to the position of equal human beings, with the affordance of human dignity and not of corporal punishment (Bitensky, 1998).

The UNCRC preamble and articles focus on the human dignity of the child, with respect to nurturing the child. The human rights viewpoint, central to the UNCRC, holds that an adult and child may share relationships on the basis of human dignity and not on the basis of domination and subservience. The UNCRC further provides lawmakers of all nations with

46 a reference point for legislation associated with the corporal punishment of children. This perspective begins from the supposition that children, just like adults, have the basic rights of human dignity and physical integrity and the right to be free from all humiliating punishments including corporal punishment. A human rights perspectives provides the same legal protection to the child as enjoyed by an adult. Around the globe the issue of corporal punishment has been analysed and reframed in a human rights perspectives as it profoundly questions the physical integrity and human dignity of children (Lombardo and

Polonko, 2005).

United Nations Convention of the Rights of Children clarifies the human dignity of a child in various articles. Article 19 para 1 states that “Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has the care of the child” while in article 28 para 2 focuses on school discipline and management stating that “Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that school discipline is administered in a manner consistent with the child's human dignity and in conformity with the present Convention”

(Save the Children, 2005:5-6).

The committee on the rights of children, a treaty body of the UNCRC on the monitoring of child protection concluded that “Corporal Punishment is incompatible with the convention” this committee further proclaimed that “…the children may not lose their human dignity and human rights virtue by entering the school gates”. The committee suggested that

47 education must be provided in a way that it does not hamper the human dignity of the child and it should be in accordance with article 12(1)6 and 28(2)7 of the UNCRC. The

Committee on the Rights of the Child continuously make it clear that corporal punishment is against the human rights and dignity of a child. The committee further elaborate that some people do not use corporal punishment while others practice it severely. Any form of violence against children, including corporal punishment, will not be regarded as acceptable. The committee states that should be protected from humiliation and assault as it is the principal of logic and humanity (Save the Children, 2005). The committee further in general comment 8 states that “Addressing the widespread acceptance or tolerance of corporal punishment of children and eliminating it, in the family and in the schools and other settings, is not only an obligation of States parties under the Convention. It is also a key strategy for reducing and preventing all forms of violence in societies” (Zolotor et al.,

2011:57).

The international treaties on human rights particularly the UNCRC provide standards for legal provisions for the protection of children from all forms of violence including corporal punishment. The Committee on the Rights of Child has constantly prohibits the practice of corporal punishment in all places including in the family and schools, and states are liable to raise awareness on the negative consequences of corporal punishment and to promote positive education and child rearing practices in order to prevent its practice (Save the

Children, 2010). In addition to the UNCRC, other international conventions can be interpreted as being against the corporal punishment of children. The Universal Declaration

6States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child. 7 States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that school discipline is administered in a manner consistent with the child's human dignity and in conformity with the present Convention.

48 on Human Rights, The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Convention against Torture all forbid the humiliating physical penalties. The International Covenant on

Economic, Social and Cultural Rights states that the schools have the responsibility to endorse human pride of all persons. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women condemned the practice of corporal punishment and recommends the elimination of it. They also propose states provide guidelines to the school’s administration to pay special care to evade strict disciplinary methods and to eliminate corporal punishment (Save the Children, 2010).

In October, 2006 a report was submitted to the United Nations General Assembly on the nature and level of violence practiced against children around the globe. The main point of the study was that “no violence against children is justifiable, all violence against children is preventable”. This report suggested the elimination of any sort of violence against children in any setting including corporal punishment and any other humiliating and inhuman punishment. This study was extremely important particularly in in challenging states to develop strategies to eliminate all form of violence against children. Three years later in 2009, on the occasion of the 20th year anniversary of the UNCRC in Cairo, a declaration was approved by member states known as the Cairo Declaration on the

Convention and Islamic Jurisprudence recommended to all Organization of Islamic

Conference (OIC) states to analyse and restructure their current legislation on child violence, to link law reform with prohibition of all types of violence against children and to promote non-violent and optimistic child development practices (Save the Children,

2010).

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The implementation of these international conventions is uneven around the world and the legislation developed by various governments has mainly focused on child welfare. The practice of corporal punishment or the physical abuse of children remains at a peak

(Polonko et al., 2016). For the prohibition of corporal punishment, a clear objective must be advocated, the human rights basis provides guidelines for its prohibition in which law reform is the most fundamental. Without law reform its prohibition is almost impossible, particularly in countries where their laws allow corporal punishment.

2.9 Summary

Corporal punishment of children is a worldwide phenomenon and a matter of concern for the academician, policy makers and social activists. It is the use of physical force intended to control the deviant behaviour of the child. Its practice in schools is due to a range of reasons such as; social, cultural and religious approval, untrained or less qualified teachers, the school environment, the low socio-economic status of the teachers and stress on teachers due to work load and overcrowded classrooms. On the negative impacts of corporal punishment, previous research has reported that the practice of corporal punishment is associated with physical harm, aggression in children, poor cognitive outcomes, mental health issues, negative impacts on the relationships with the teacher and poor academic performance. Advocates of corporal punishment hold the position that research finds it is effective for maintaining discipline and obedience in children and it is also effective for short term compliance and does not have negative impacts in the long run. Islam gives priority to the virtue of mercy for child rearing but in some conditions supports the practice of corporal punishment under described rules. A human rights perspective clearly considers it a violation of human dignity and integrity and various

50 international treaties like UNCRC, The Universal Declaration on Human Rights, The

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Convention against Torture all forbid the humiliating physical penalties. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and

Cultural Rights, The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,

Cairo Declaration on the Convention and Islamic Jurisprudence all consider corporal punishment as a violation of basic human rights and consider it as breach on human dignity.

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Chapter 3

Prevalence of Corporal Punishment in Pakistan and Government’s Approach

In the previous chapter previous studies have been analysed and the phenomenon of corporal punishment was analysed in global perspective. In this chapter I will try to have an eye on the situational analysis in Pakistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Government of Pakistan measures will also be analysed in this chapter particularly focusing on legislative measures.

3.1 Preamble

The practice of corporal punishment is a routine phenomenon in the lives of Pakistani’s children as like the other parts of the world. In Pakistan corporal punishment has the support of socio-cultural and religious doctrine (Naz et al., 2011). Though Pakistan ratified the

United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children in 1990, which clearly prohibits the practice of corporal punishment, it is still a socially acceptable phenomenon in the country.

In the previous chapter, factors underpinning its practice, negative and positive impacts on children and Islamic and human rights perspectives on the issues of corporal punishment were discussed. In this chapter, problems in the country’s education sector, the prevalence of corporal punishment in schools or even violence in education along with the government of Pakistan’s approach in dealing with the problem of corporal punishment are reviewed.

3.2 The Dilemma of Education in Pakistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Pakistan is located on the western side of South Asia, with a population of round about 184 million and a sex ratio of 105.6:100. The GDP per capita income of the country for the year

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2012-13 was US 13,68 dollars. Pakistan is an underdeveloped country, slowly transitioning from an agricultural based country to an advanced industrial zone (Govt. of Pakistan, 2015).

The country is confronted by various problems such as security issues, unemployment, power shortage, sectarian violence, and poverty. Some of the causative factors responsible for these problems are lack of awareness, tolerance among people and mass illiteracy due to an ineffective educational system. The importance of education has been neglected by the Government which is a factor in low development in all areas. A very minimum budget has been allocated to the education sector which has further weakened the education output.

Due to these issues the educational system has been slow to develop the nation socially, politically and economically. Seven decades have passed since the creation of Pakistan and more than 25 educational policies have been developed but all have failed to take the nation to the desired level of development (Ahmad et al., 2014).

Pakistan is currently confronted with various issues which are beyond the extremism that is often highlighted by the global media. The country is facing severe problems related to public health, energy issues, food insecurity are just a few. Pakistan is also suffering from major educational issues. Millions of children in the country are out of school and those that are enrolled are confronted with poor environments for learning and under-qualified, untrained or absent teachers (Naviwala, 2015). Education plays a key role in developing human resource for a country. Education increases the efficacy and efficiency of citizens and enhances manpower skills that in turn lead the country to sustainable economic progress (Memon, 2007).

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Schooling in Pakistan is mostly in three stages i.e. primary, middle and secondary schools.

Primary stage is from KG to 5 years, middle schooling is of 3 years from 6-8 while secondary is of 2 years consist of 9 and 10 years of schooling. Education starts at the age of 5 years in the country (Nordic, 2006). Currently, one third of primary school children are out of school (Govt. of Pakistan, 2015). One of the reasons for school non-attendance is the practice of corporal punishment. It has been reported through different reports and numerous educational indicators including gender inequality and school drop-outs in the country (Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, 2003).

The Constitution of Pakistan (1973) emphasized to its people in the Article 37 (b) and (c) that “the state shall remove illiteracy and provide free and compulsory secondary education within the minimum possible period, make technical and professional education generally available and higher education equally accessible to all on the basis of merit”. One important reform was made by National Assembly of Pakistan in April, 2010 in the 18th

Amendment of the Constitution of Pakistan, for the children aged 5-16 free access to school was considered as the essential and enforceable right of the children. Article 25-A was inserted in the Constitution which states that the “state shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to sixteen years, in such a manner as may be determined by law” (Govt. of Pakistan, 2015).

After the 18th amendment in the Constitution of Pakistan, in April, 2010 education is now a provincial domain. In the country as well as in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa schools are of two types i.e. public and private sector schools. In addition, ‘Deeni Madrassa’ or religious schools also operate financed by local people. In Pakistan there are 146,185 primary

54 schools, 42,147 lower secondary or middle schools and 29,874 secondary schools while in

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 24,991 are primary schools, 4921 are middle schools and 3774 are high schools. Enrolment in primary schools in Pakistan is 9.8 million for boys and 7.7 million for girls, in the middle schools a total of 6 million children are enrolled with boys

57% and girls 43%, while in the high or secondary schools enrolment is 2.8 million with a proportion of 58% for boys and 42% for girls. Enrolment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is of importance for this study; primary enrolment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is 2,980,910 with

1,785,509 boys and 1,195,401 girls. In middle schools the enrolment is 1,050,771 with

691,501 boys and 359,270 girls, while in secondary schools enrolment is 424,661 with

288,592 boys and 136,069 are girls (Govt. of Pakistan, 2015).

Pakistan is not on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goal-2 which was to attain primary education for all. The literacy rate for the population aged above ten years in 2011-

12 was 58% which is relatively low in comparison with other South Asian countries including India, Sri Lanka and Nepal where the literacy rate is 83%, 90% and 70% respectively. According to the Education for All Global Monitoring Report of 2012, out of the 19 million children age 5-9, one fourth are out of school. This situation is particularly disappointing in the context of Article 25-A of the Pakistan Constitution and may be due to various reasons including poverty, cultural traditions and lack of access to schools

(SPARC, 2014).

In Pakistan, progress in aspects related to early childhood has not been the main objective of government policies, as the government is mainly focused on increasing enrolment both in primary and secondary schools. The National Plan of Action (2001-15) focuses on the

55 importance of Early Childhood Care and Education. The Gross Enrolment Rate (GER) in pre-primary education grew to 66.4% in 2014-15 as compared to 25% in 2000-01. The

Millennium Development Goal-2 of “Universal Primary Education for All” had not been achieved by the country up to 2015 (SPARC, 2016).

The National Education Policy of 2009 focuses on two main objectives which are widening access to education and improving the quality of education. Following the steps of Federal

Government at provincial level various education sector plans were also developed. The education sector plan of the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (2010-15) set the objective of achieving universal primary education by 2015 and also achieving an adult literacy rate of 50% especially for women (Govt. of Pakistan, 2015).

The Government of Pakistan developed the National Education Policy (1998-2010) which had a clear vision and direction for support of the education department. After 2001, the

Education Ministry developed various policy documents including the National Education

Policy (2009) but these have not been implemented and remain as a working document.

The main reason for this is that these policies are not environment friendly based on an understanding of the realities of the school environment. School dropout rates are extremely disappointing in Pakistan where 30% students enrol in secondary schools and just 19% students go on to further education (Rashid and Mukhtar, 2012).

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These problems are mostly related to spending less budget on education. Pakistan has spent

2.7% of its GDP8 on education for the 2016 fiscal year, while the international standard is a minimum 4% (Naviwala, 2015). The minimum level of investment is the main cause of

Pakistan’s poor education sector, which includes poor quality of monitoring, management, supervision of teachers and the poor performance in implementing the programs (Memon,

2007). Staff student ratios are also concerning. In primary schools the student/teacher ratio is 40:1 while in secondary schools it is also 40:1 which is high as compared with India,

Bangladesh and Indonesia where the ratio is 25:1, 30:1 and 15:1 respectively (Aziz et al.,

2014).

The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa budget for the year 2015-16 was Rs9. 488 billion with an increase of 17% from the previous budget, however the education budget in 2016-

17 has been reduced by 3% from the previous year. On the basis of budget allocation, the

Elementary and Secondary Education Department has received 104.2 billion. In addition to the budget debate, 2.4 million children aged 5-16 remain out of school (0.7 million boys and 1.7 million girls). Yet, Pakistan is a signatory to the UNCRC and other international conventions and therefore obliged to provide quality education to all children despite of their religion, class and gender (SPARC, 2016). Ahmad et al., (2014) highlighted the problems of educational sector in Pakistan. According to them there is; a lack of uniformity in the education system, education without any direction, outdated curricula, no professional training for teachers, lack of qualified and quality teachers, mass drop out due to various reasons including corporal punishment, a poor examination system, a lack of

8 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all final goods and services produced in a period (quarterly or yearly). Pakistan GDP per capita of $1,429, which ranks 140th in the world. 9 Rs. means “rupees‟ the official currency of Pakistan. Currently (2017), one pound sterling is equal to 133.97 and one US Dollar to 104.72 Pakistani rupees. However, this exchange rate often fluctuates.

57 proper supervision and monitoring, scare resources, gaps in policy implementation and an insufficient budget allocation for the sector. Others identify further difficulties that challenge Pakistan in providing education to its population. There are still inadequate buildings for schools, a shortage of basic services, overcrowded classrooms and a lack of text books. In the face of these difficulties the country has changed its approach from a bottom-up to top-down strategy, by giving importance to both higher and basic education

(Nordic, 2006).

These problems for the education department are not unknown and various governments have tried to resolve them. In the early years of its independence, in 1959, the National

Commission on Education produced a report which outlined the problems faced and their possible solutions. But despite these efforts these problems are still in existence even though the government addressed these issues repeatedly in the Educational Policies of

1970, 1972, 1979, 1992 and 1998 but these are there has been a failure to realise the policies on the ground (Aziz et al., 2014).

The Human Development Report showed that Pakistan ranked 136th with literacy rates below 50% and primary completion rates for females at 33.8% and males 47.18%. It also found that school drops out for primary level are 45% (Ahmad et al., 2012). Thus, the problems of the education sector are numerous and the government is confronted with several internal and external issues.

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3.3 The Prevalence of Corporal Punishment in Pakistan

Currently, Pakistan does not have any official statistics on the prevalence of corporal punishment in the country (Holden and Ashraf, 2016). The violence used against children is a very common phenomenon in Pakistan, having various facets and many layers which effect the child in different ways, as noted in Chapter 2. Among the world total child population 54.7% of children are living in countries where they have not been protected by law against corporal punishment in schools, out of these 44.7% are living in South Asian countries (SAIEVAC, 2011).

In 2014, a report released on the Child Protection status in Pakistan showed the prevalence of various forms of violence against children. This report drew on cases that had been reported in the print and electronic media and police department records. The practice of violence against children is very high in the country. The data is analysed from January

2000 till December 2013. According to this report 10,192 children were murdered, 4572 were raped, 3429 were sodomised, torture cases were 4996, 3336 children were trafficked, missing children were 11,224, suicide due to various reasons were 4857, police torture cases were 2071, Karo Kari10 1107, kidnapping 11,697, forced marriage 11,069 and Vani11 cases were 1381. The report further shows violence against children on a provincial level where in Baluchistan there were 2135 cases reported, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 5161, in

Punjab 39,142 and in Sindh 23,166 (SPARC, 2015). Whilst these cases represent the

10 Honour killings in Pakistan are known locally as karo-kari. An honour killing is the homicide of a member of a family or social group by other members, due to the belief the victim has brought dishonour upon the family or community. 11 Vani is a cultural custom found in parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan wherein young girls are forcibly married as part of punishment for a crime committed by her male relatives. Vani is a form of arranged child marriage, and the result of punishment decided by a council of tribal elders named .

59 extremes of violence towards children research has established a link between torture and violence and excessive corporal punishment (see Chapter 2).

The practice of corporal punishment is a pervasive form of violence against children in various settings like schools, homes and places of work in Pakistan. Pakistan is included among the 50 states where the administration of corporal punishment is an acceptable phenomenon and which is culturally and traditionally acceptable (SPARC, 2015). To date the Government of Pakistan has not developed any database which measures cases of corporal punishment in schools, homes or any other place. Usually, the culprits settle their cases of seriously injured or hurt children through informal means (SPARC, 2016).

Corporal punishment is lawful in the country; section 89 (discussed in the next section) of the Pakistan Penal Code allows its practice in good faith. Although ministerial directives from the federal government to the provinces have directed teachers not to practice corporal punishment, the legislation does not prohibit it (SAIEVAC, 2011). In 2014, a number of cases have been reported of corporal punishment against children, although it was a very minimum proportion of the number of actual cases. This is because the majority of cases remain unreported due to cultural and social acceptability. Though various cases have been reported in the country in general and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in particular, and it is helpful to highlight a sample of those that are to show the nature of corporal punishment in the country (SPARC, 2016).

In the city of Faisalabad (Punjab), in May 2014, a government school teacher punished a

3rd class student for taking sick leave without prior notice. The severe punishment injured

60 the arm of the child. The mother of the child complained to the head teacher but no legal action has been taken against the teacher (SPARC, 2016).

In August, 2014 a school head teacher in Abbottabad (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) punished a

10th class student which resulted in the student becoming unconscious. The father took the child to the hospital where the doctor advised a month’s bed rest (SPARC, 2016).

In Dargai () in May 2014, a teacher was arrested by the Malakand Levies for punishing a first class student on the complaint of the student’s father, but later the issue was resolved by the elders of the community (SPARC, 2016).

In September, 2014 in Peshawar in a Government High School for Girls a ninth class student was punished by the teacher for being late. The teacher became angrier when the student argue that the practice of corporal punishment is banned in schools. After that the teacher started beating her with a stick which made her unconscious and fractured two fingers. The District Education Officer took notice of the incident and formed a committee to probe the matter but no action has been taken against the teacher (SPARC, 2016).

In 2011 Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child12 (SPARC) conducted a study in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which reported that 76% of the parents were in favour of corporal punishment (SPARC, 2014). One year on, in 2012, Plan International conducted a survey

12 The Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC) is a Pakistani independent non- governmental organization dedicated to protecting the rights of children.

61 in which 75% of Pakistani adults stated that they believe that Islam allows slapping children if they are not behaving properly. Following this, Plan Pakistan conducted a survey in 2013 which showed that 20% of teachers ‘highly agreed’ and 47% ‘partially agreed’ that corporal punishment is compulsory for some students. Furthermore, 75% of teachers and 84% of parents believed that teachers are right in punishing children. Over half of teachers agreed

(20% ‘fully agreed’, 31% ‘partially agreed’) that corporal punishment does not have any harmful effects on children. When students were asked about the type of punishment they receive in the schools, 24% reported they had been beaten on their palms either by a stick or a ruler, 22% reported that they had been slapped either on the head or face. The remaining students reported that either they had been forced to sit or stand in an uncomfortable position, or been punished with a ruler or stick on other parts of the body or had been kicked. This study was conducted in 32 schools of four districts including

Chakwal (Punjab), Gilgit (Gilgit-Baltistan), Thatta (Sindh) and Lasbela (Balochistan). The data was collected from 300 students and 137 teachers (Plan Pakistan, 2013). In a study conducted on perceptions of the usefulness of corporal punishment in 15 districts of

Pakistan, 823 teachers and 441 head teachers were interviewed in 634 schools. The study found that 73% ‘agreed’ and 22% did ‘not agree’ that ‘corporal punishment is useful’

(SPARC, 2016).

Another study conducted on students aged 12-17 years from October, 2013 to March, 2014 reported that 44% of students received punishment from teachers in the last six months. In the study the teachers and the parents reported that corporal punishment is on the decline in the country but in contrast, the students reported that they still receive severe punishment if they do any wrong. Teachers were of the opinion that corporal punishment is compulsory for character building and academic achievement (ICRW and Plan Pakistan, 2014).

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The practice of corporal punishment in the schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a routine phenomenon. Looking to its impacts on children, the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has published various statements in daily newspapers for its prohibition in schools as various injuries due to corporal punishment have been reported both in print and electronic media (Suleman, et al., 2014).

In 2010, SPARC conducted a baseline survey in 5 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa;

Peshawar, Charsadda, Swabi, Mardan and Nowshera. The study reported that corporal punishment practice is highly prevalent as reported by 83% of teachers. The study further highlighted that 87% of teachers are in favour of ‘moderate’ corporal punishment for the purpose of disciplining the child. In this study 82% of the executive functionaries were against corporal punishment but in teachers who were aware of the law related to banning corporal punishment in schools, 76% still favoured it. The study also reported that no proper mechanism has been developed for the monitoring of schools. It also found that the main reasons for school drop outs in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are poverty (90%), lack of parental interest (85%) and the practice of corporal punishment (79%) (SPARC, 2015).

Though the government had banned its practice in 1999 and again in 2013, the ban failed due to no proper monitoring mechanism (SPARC, 2016).

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 104 cases of corporal punishment were reported to Child

Protection Units from 01st May 2011 to 08th September 2014, even though its practice is also banned in the schools by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government under the section 34 of the

‘Child Protection and Welfare Act 2010’. Violation of this Act can incur a 6 month prison sentence with a fine of 50 thousand Rs. However, at the same time the Act also allows

63 teachers, parents and guardians to practice corporal punishment if necessary for child correction and disciplining purposes. This situation is contradictory and ambiguous which has negative impacts on enforcement of the legal framework for corporal punishment and it is argued that this requires legal amendment (SPARC, 2015).

Number of studies provide data on the prevalence of corporal punishment in schools in different regions. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 4200 school children aged 5-16 were interviewed for the prevalence and nature of corporal punishment; no child reported that he or she had not been so punished. 54% reported that they were slapped, 29% were hit on the back, 16.6% were beaten with a stick, 12.3% were kicked, 11% had their hair pulled, 2% were hit with an object, 1.1% were shaken. Among these children 17% reported that the punishment was “very severe”, 52% that it was “severe” and 31% reported that it was

“mild” (SAIEVAC, 2011).

The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with Save the Children and UNICEF conducted a survey in three districts. Data was collected through interviews from 3528 children aged 6-14, 1231 parents and 486 teachers. Every child had experienced corporal punishment at least once and the nature of punishment were smacking, hitting with an object including shoe, brick, iron rod and stick, hair pulling, ear twisting and being placed in an uncomfortable position (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

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3.4 Prohibiting Corporal Punishment in Pakistan: An overview of the Government

Approach

Among South Asian countries Pakistan is one where corporal punishment is practiced severely, with no standard reporting mechanisms and a lack of awareness of the impacts among the local population (Lodhi and Siddiqui, 2014).

The Government of Pakistan ratified UNCRC on the 12th of November, 1990 with some reservations on its implementation following Islamic values and principles but 7 years later, in 1997, the Government withdrew the reservations. Pakistan also ratified other international conventions related to child rights instruments including the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) ratified in 1996, the Yokohama Global Commitment in 2001 and the Convention concerning the prohibition and immediate action for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour ratified in 2001

(Berti, 2003).

Corporal punishment is associated with a great range of negative outcomes for children which include aggression, decreased cognitive development, physical and psychological issues (see Chapter 2). Keeping in view these harmful effects different countries have started banning its practice in homes, schools and other places. In the 21st century its practice is a contentious phenomenon which has led educationalists, parents, psychologists and social activists to call for law reform for its prohibition (Ogbe, 2015). Pakistan is a signatory to the UNCRC by which the country is bound to develop a child protection structure in the country but unfortunately due to the cultural, social and traditional values, family and child related issues are considered private matters which allows less intervention

65 from the state. In the current legislation related to child protection three issues are emerging; first the issue in defining clear child protection concepts for practice, second the unavailability of institutional and administrative structures for the implementation of legal provisions and third large scale efforts to deal with social hesitancy (Jabeen, 2016).

The country of Pakistan is a composition of four provinces; Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,

Sindh and Baluchistan along with Federally administrated tribal area (FATA) and provincially administrated tribal areas (PATA). These provinces are autonomous in making legislation and policies related to the matter of child protection. These provinces also have different social, economic, cultural and demographic characteristics. Therefore, legislation related to child protection varies from province to province (Jabeen, 2016). Child abuse and protection practices were started in Pakistan with its independence in 1947. However, no specific data related to child victimization at that time is available although it is reported that children have long been victimized in combats, disasters and internal conflicts in the country (Jabeen, 2013).

The practice of corporal punishment is lawful under the section 89 of Pakistan Penal Code which states that an:

“Act done in good faith for the benefit of a child or insane person, by or by

consent of a guardian: Nothing which is done in good faith for the benefit of a

person under 12 years of age, or of unsound mind, or by consent, either

expressed or implied, of the guardian or other person having lawful charge of

that person….would not extend” (Holden and Ashraf, 2016: 68).

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This article clearly allows the corporal punishment of children in any setting. The sentence

‘done in good faith’ and ‘for the benefit’ supports the punishment of children. The article further allows other people who are in charge of the child to practice corporal punishment in the sentence ‘other person having lawful charge of that person’. Furthermore, in providing full responsibility to parents, teachers and other persons who are in legal charge of the child to use corporal punishment the article did not provide any legal protection to children. For example, if the practice of corporal punishment may cause severe injuries to the child but if it was not the intention of the perpetrator to do so, then he will not face any legal action (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

As with section 89 of PPC, similar provisions are also in the various provincial acts that support the practice of corporal punishment; for example, the Punjab Destitute and Neglect

Children Act 2004 (Section 35), the Sindh Children Act 1955 (Section 48) and the Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act 2010. These sections need to be revised or repealed in order to prohibit the corporal punishment of children completely. The judiciary of Pakistan confirmed that these acts offer a legal status for the practice of corporal punishment. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act 2010 prohibits the practice of corporal punishment in the sentence “in all its kinds and manifestations as provided in section 89 of the PPC 1860” (Section 33) and permits “reasonable punishment not corporal punishment” in section 44. However, as the section 89 of PPC is still not over written which create hurdle in the implementation of this act. The National Policy of 2006 recognizes the protection of children from all types of violence and corporal punishment but the law is in contradiction with it (Global Initiative to End Corporal Punishment of

Children, 2017). The Ministry of Law, Justice and Human Rights on March 27, 2014 launched a national campaign for prohibiting the corporal punishment of children in all

67 settings in alliance with the South Asia Coordinating Group on Action Against Violence against Children (SACG) and SAIEVAC. Pakistan assured it would take all administrative and legal actions to deal with corporal punishment and ensure the security and protection of children in accordance with the child rights. The prohibition of corporal punishment bill was presented to the National Assembly of Pakistan in March, 2014 but it had not been passed by the Senate of Pakistan in 2017 (Global Initiative to End Corporal Punishment of

Children, 2017).

An analysis of the history of publications on child protection issues, finds the early 1990s focusing on child labour and later 1990s on child sexual abuse, although child labour was not considered a children protection issue in the country. Child abuse and exploitation remains an even more controversial and debatable issue in the country particularly in the context of the Pakistan Suppression of Prostitution Ordinance of 1961, which reported on the prevalence of the issue in the country. However, no such cases were reported due to the cultural and traditional attitudes of the people, particularly if the victim is a girl (Jabeen,

2013).

After the killing of 100 children in Lahore (Punjab) in 1991 the issue of child protection was dramatically highlighted. This tragedy demonstrated issues of violence against children, particularly the practice of corporal punishment in homes, schools and other places. Corporal punishment makes children run away from these places and end up on the streets which increases vulnerability to murder, rape or other forms of exploitation (Jabeen,

2013).

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The National Assembly of Pakistan in March, 2014 passed the ‘Prohibition of Corporal

Punishment Bill 2014”. This bill aimed at the protection of child dignity, integrity and the elimination of corporal punishment from schools, care centers and in the juvenile justice system. The violation of this bill may incur a prison sentence of one year with a fine of

PKR 50 thousand or both (SPARC, 2016). It was the first legislative progress towards banning corporal punishment in all child care centers including the schools (SPARC, 2015).

The prohibition of corporal punishment bill was initially submitted by Dr. Attiya

Inayatullah in 2010, the act was known as ‘Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill, 2010’.

However, this bill was not passed at that time due to various reasons including unstable political condition, natural disasters and law and order situation in the country. Four years later in 2014, Marvi Memon submitted the ‘Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill, 2014’ to the National Assembly of Pakistan which was approved accordingly and sent to the

Senate of Pakistan for further approval (Government of Pakistan, 2016).

Section 1 of the bill clearly states that this act will be for the whole of Pakistan and will be implemented and come to force at one time in the country. In section 3(1) of the bill it is stated that the child should be given due respect for his independence and nature and no corporal punishment or any other humiliating punishment is allowed. Section 3(2) of the act has not overwritten section 89 of the PPC. It prohibits corporal punishment of children in any public setting, including schools, day care centers and juvenile justice system but does not focus on homes. Section 4(1) of the bill deals with the punishment of offenders; any person who is found guilty of practicing corporal punishment will be punished with imprisonment of a maximum one year or a fine of fifty thousand PKR or both. Reporting

69 mechanisms are also addressed; the child victim or his parent or guardian can make a complaint to the Magistrate’s Office about the teacher who had practiced the corporal punishment. In section 5(2) of the bill it is also stated that it is a bailable offence

(Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill, 2014).

After approval by the National Assembly the bill was presented to the Senate of Pakistan on 29th February, 2016 by Senator Saleem Mandviwaloon. In the Senate proceeding of 24th

November, 2016 Senator Abdur Rehman Malik raised the issue for granting more time for presenting the report and an extension was granted by the Senate (Government of Pakistan,

2016).

The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had developed the Child Protection and Welfare

Act 2010. This act is still unable to define clearly child protection or related concepts

(Jabeen, 2016). The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act of 2010 bans corporal punishment in all setting including homes, schools and other places. However, it has failed in banning corporal punishment in the province as it is contradicted by section

89 of PPC as it had not overwritten section 89. To fill this, gap the government developed a Grievances Redressal Mechanism in 2012 for dealing with complaints related to corporal punishment (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

The UNCRC has focused and stressed that alternative discipline measures must be developed as an alternative to the cruel and degrading child punishments. In 2003, the

Committee had advised Pakistan to ban corporal punishment in all settings, through increasing public awareness of the harm and negative consequences on children and society

70 and provide training to parents and teachers on alternative methods of disciplining the child.

Following the advice of the UNCRC the Federal Government as well as the Provincial

Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Known as NWFP at that time) banned corporal punishment in schools in December, 2003. However, the teachers still practice it as no legal process was available to deal with the corporal punishment related issues (Mirza and Ali,

2014).

Pakistan demonstrated its promise to abolish corporal punishment in the meeting of the

South Asian Forum in July, 2006 following the Regional Consultation of the UN study on

Violence against Children in 2005. The Government of Pakistan confirmed its commitment for reforming and reshaping the law and starting a national level campaign against corporal punishment (Global Initiative to End Corporal Punishment of Children, 2017).

There are regional differences in interpretation of this goal across the country. The

Baluchistan Child Welfare and Protection Act bans the practice of corporal punishment in homes but for schools and day care centers it is under discussion, similar to Punjab. In

Gilgit-Baltistan corporal punishment was prohibited in August 2016 under the ‘Gilgit-

Baltistan Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill’. This bill prohibits corporal punishment in all settings including homes, schools, day care centers and juvenile justice system. The

Child Protection System Bill 2014, for the Capital Territory Islamabad abolished corporal punishment after being passed by the Lower House of the Senate. Article 38 of this bill states “Corporal punishment stands abolished in all its kinds and manifestations and its practice in any form is prohibited”. However, Article 2 in defining corporal punishment only covers punishment reaching a higher level, that is; “Corporal Punishment means

71 intentional use of physical force intended to cause a high degree of pain or discomfort for discipline, correcting or controlling, changing behavior or in the belief of education or bringing up the child, that either result in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, psychological harm, mal development or deprivation’ (my emphasis). The Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act of 2012, passed by the Capital Territory Islamabad, also prohibits corporal punishment of children aged from 5-16 years in article 13 of the Act. In

June 2016 two bills were presented to the National Assembly of Pakistan that are related to abolishing corporal punishment; the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill 2015 and the

Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill 2016. Neither bill completely prohibits corporal punishment (Global Initiative to End Corporal Punishment of Children, 2017). Finally, the

Government of Sindh Rights of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2013, prohibits corporal punishment for children aged 5-16 in the government administrated schools (Holden and Ashraf, 2016).

The standing committee of the Senate on 19th January 2017 examining the Prohibition of

Corporal Punishment Bill of 2016 but no specific date was set for its consideration. As this bill is approved by the National Assembly it can only be implemented in federal areas by the provincial governments who must develop their own laws for combating the issue

(Global Initiative to End Corporal Punishment of Children, 2017). This may move Pakistan closer to a coherent national legal context but still allows for local variations to remain.

As mentioned earlier the Government of Pakistan does not have any central child protection database, which mitigates against the collection of national data to assess the resources required to address the problem and to identify areas in most need of interventions (Jabeen,

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2014). Almost 27 years has passed since the government of Pakistan ratified the UNCRC promising to abolish all types of violence against children including corporal punishment.

This summary of the legislative context finds that actions by the government in the first 15 years after the ratification of UNCRC have been slow, hampered by extensive debates and regional differences. The Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill is a major step towards the abolishment of its practice, although it is still faced with many legal issues but there is hope amongst those who support it that Pakistan is now closer to having strong documentation against the prohibition of corporal punishment of children. However, as has been demonstrated in the research conducted on the issue in Pakistan, summarised above, legislation must always be applied and therefore it is important to understand public and professional attitudes towards the issue. If the law changes, as it has done in the past across the country in different ways, to what extent is it likely that practices with change? This question lies at the heart of this thesis. To begin to address it, it is important to review explanatory theoretical frameworks that help to further understand the enduring nature of the practice of corporal punishment of children, notwithstanding legal prohibitions.

3.5 Summary

Pakistan is confronted with various issues including the practice of corporal punishment.

The problems of education are of great importance for the country in terms of human capital development. Pakistan ratified United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children which clearly bans the practice of corporal punishment in schools and guides the government to make proper legislative and social services for the children to protect them from the practice of corporal punishment. Although 27 years has passed since ratification, the practice of corporal punishment is still a socially and culturally acceptable phenomenon with cases

73 continuing to be reported in print and electronic media. The Government of Pakistan passed the Prohibition of Corporal Punishment bill from the National Assembly at federal level and provinces also passed the anti-corporal punishment bills but they are not implemented and for the major part remain a paper work.

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Chapter 4

Theoretical Framework

4.1 Preamble

Theories provide a method for organized explanations of everyday life (Babbie, 2006).

Taking a psycho-social perspective there are numerous theories that offer candidate explanations for the practice of the corporal punishment of children. These include; communication theory, conflict theory, control theory, social bond theory, exchange theory, social-stress theory and social control theory (Straus and Donnelly, 2005).

Communication theory states that corporal punishment is used as a last resort when the communication strategy fails to achieve the desired goals (Infante, 2005). Conflict theory focuses on the dominancy of its perpetrator, the adults use corporal punishment to be authoritative and control the child (Collins, 2005). Control theory is more in a criminological perspective, hypothesizing that individuals can get immediate benefits using little energy and this attribute has been linked with corporal punishment (Hirschi and

Gottfredson, 2005). Social bond theory explains the dynamics of interpersonal relationships and focuses on personality, behaviour and attitudes arising from these relationships, including the use of coercive methods (Scheff, 2005). Exchange theory has been used as a general theory for human behaviour, applied to study family in general and violence within the family in particular (Gelles, 2005). Social stress theory provides a framework for examining the social structure and vulnerability of individuals that results in personal outcomes for individuals including emotions, physical and mental disorder and behavioural responses including aggression and violence (Turner, 2005). Social control theory focuses on controlling deviant behaviours by both the formal and informal means (Tucker and Ross,

2005).

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These theories help to explain why corporal punishment may occur under specific circumstances, particularly in the home. For example, its use as a method for resolving conflict between parents and children (Straus ref) or reflecting an inability to communicate in less violent ways. These theories are more applicable in the criminological perspective as they do not cover the outcome of corporal punishment on children, the alternative methods for behaviour modification of the child and the environmental influences which increase or decrease the practice of corporal punishment. In order to have a more in-depth understanding of the topic, required to address it as an institutionalised practice, additional theoretical frameworks are required. The main theoretical frameworks for the present study are based on choice theory (Glasser, 1998), attachment theory (Bowlby, 1982) selected to understand the individual perspective at a micro level while at a micro, meso, macro level, ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1986) has been taken into account in order to provide a holistic interpretation of the phenomenon under study.

4.2 Choice Theory

To date science may offer some explanation about the causes of anti-social behaviour but is limited in terms of explanations of how to deal with it. Choice theory contributes to the latter as it not only enables learners to be aware of their behaviour but also helps towards management of that behaviour and its modification. Behaviour management of students is a broader issue not only in the classroom but outside of it. Over the last two decades models related to behaviour management have been developed. For example, in Australia choice theory has been implemented as a primary approach for the discipline of children in schools. Choice theory enables the student to be aware of their responsibilities in order to make their own decisions related to their behaviour and learning process in the classroom

76 or school. The logic behind this is that it will develop a sense of ownership related to learning in the students, increase participation and levels of self-esteem and confidence

(Bechuke and Debeila, 2012).

Glasser started his work in the early 1960s as a psychologist in a mental hospital and after that with a female delinquent in a high school. During that time he develop his own therapy which was known as ‘Reality Therapy’, which was derived from control theory. Control theory was based on the assumption that every individual can control his or her own behaviour by him or herself. In the late 1980s he changed its name from Control theory to

Choice theory, which makes it clear that individuals choose their own behaviour. After that

Glasser started his work on school discipline and management concentrating on students- teacher relationships and the quality of work in the school. The aim of this was to engender positive school discipline and learning processes that accentuated individual student choice

(Davis, 2010).

Glasser (1998) believed that behaviour is a personal choice of every individual based upon his or her own experiences, needs and feelings. Choice theory postulates that the teacher cannot ultimately determine or control the behaviour of the student but they can help them to identify their anti-social behaviour and change their feelings about it, it is only the students who can change their feelings and behaviours on their own (Gabriel and Matthews,

2011). An application of choice theory to school settings proposed seven ‘deadly habits’ which had negative impacts on the student and teacher relationship. These habits are criticizing, blaming, complaining, nagging, threatening, punishing and bribing or rewarding to control. For positive and healthy relationships to develop it is proposed that

77 these need to be replaced with seven caring habits which are supporting, listening, accepting, respecting, encouraging, trusting and negotiating the differences (Sequeira,

2007).

Choice theory mainly focuses on the behaviour of an individual. Glasser reported three stages of human behaviour 1) all we do is behaviour, 2) all behaviour is chosen and 3) all behaviour is ‘total behaviour’. Total behaviour is the combination of four components; acting, thinking, feeling and physiology. Humans usually have a direct control over the thinking and acting components and almost an indirect control over feelings and physiology

(Walter et al., 2008). Three main components drive choice theory. First it holds that substantial problems are due to problems in relationships between people and this effects every individual in a society. These problems may be due to the unhappy relationships with one another or even with oneself (Glasser, 1998). Second is that only the individual can control his or her own behaviour. He explains that although individuals receive information it is their own choice as to how they respond (Glasser, 1998) and finally the most important factor of choice theory is that all human beings are motivated by five elementary needs which are survival, love and belonging, freedom, fun and power (Davis, 2010).

For fulfilling these basic needs individuals must be aware of their ‘quality world’ image

(archetypes, perfect worlds). The image of quality world is personal and specific based on people, beliefs and things which satisfy the elementary needs. Problems arise when this quality world does not match the real world and individuals are unable to cope with these differences (Davis, 2010).

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For the student, school is the initial place where their quality world image may be challenged and where they start to face the resulting problems which in turn can impact negatively on the relationship with the teacher and later with the school (Basic et al., 1997).

Glasser believed that dependence on punishment in schools has been very unsuccessful in promoting and improving the student discipline, behaviour management and academic performance (Walter et al., 2008). In his quality world of the school Glasser focuses on the value of relationships and the quality of work between the teacher and the student (Davis,

2010).

Choice theory mainly focuses on the issue of helping and guiding the student to develop a sense of self responsibility, thus increasing their internal level of self-control. Researchers

(see Akos, 2005; Wigfield, Lutz, and Wagner, 2005; Beck and Malley, 1998; McNeely,

Nonnemaker, and Blum, 2002 and Kruczek et al., 2005) reported that when teachers apply choice theory it teaches the “students to satisfy their needs in appropriate and effective methods”. This helps the student in decreasing destructive and disruptive behaviours and leads to an increase in choices of behaviours that more appropriately and effectively satisfy their basic need. Glasser was of the opinion that students have more power within their inner self as compared to external factors for controlling their behaviour (Walter et al.,

2008).

Glasser reported that all individuals had developed specific and certain images in their brain of other people, system, ideas and things which represent their basic needs. The concept of the quality world has been started with the birth of an individual and continuous throughout his or her life span. Choice theory postulates that relationships between the individuals are

79 the basic component of the quality world, therefore the relationships between the teacher and student must be healthy and positive for maintaining the image of the quality world in the student’s mind (Walter et al., 2008). The main components of choice theory highlight that all our behaviour is chosen by us and no other person. Choice theory reports that no one or thing have the ability to control someone. The choice of what to do and what not to do is only within the person concern, and thus the individual receives the consequences of his/her choices and is responsible for it. The sense of responsibility provides a platform for learning and choosing behaviour that will fulfil the basic needs of the individual (Glasser,

1998).

Choice theory implemented the ‘Reality therapy’ in which the teacher teaches the students the elementary view of choice theory: “the only person I can control is myself”. The teachers focuses on the way that making various choices bring them closer to different people and help to meet needs in their life. Reality therapy focuses on the current behaviour of the student so they may choose it and fulfil their basic needs effectively. Reality therapy in actuality is ‘present-oriented’ (Walter et al., 2008).

Choice theory encourages the students to make their own decisions and choices so they may become aware of their self-realization and decision making. For the non-coercive teacher, the theory postulates that the teachers may guide the students to behave in a way that is opposite to their natural inclination (Charles, 2011). Positive and fruitful learning cannot be achieved until and unless the teacher develops and implements a positive management and discipline system (Gabriel and Matthews, 2011).

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4.2.1 Application of Choice Theory to Corporal Punishment

Choice theory postulates that students are able and capable of making their personal positive choices or even make their own behaviour socially acceptable through their own sense of responsibility (Khanal and Park, 2016). The basis for choice theory is humanism and cognitive theory which states that people behave according to their own choice, to meet their basic needs as effectively as possible in any given circumstances. Therefore, teachers should guide the students to make their choices in a way that meets their basic needs without violating the fundamental rights of other people (Khewu, 2012).

For the purpose of maintaining school discipline in longer term (i.e. not in the immediate moment) teachers should develop and implement strategies that are not based on physical coercion. In order to improve the classroom atmosphere, the teacher should work on students’ behaviour modification and should understand the causes behind the irrational or misbehaviour of the child. The application of choice theory to identify and understand the student behaviour is helpful because it will encourage understanding and the development of discipline strategies that will modify the behaviour of students effectively (Bechuke and

Debeila, 2012). Schools must reconsider their approaches towards maintaining school discipline and addressing child behavioural issues (Naong, 2007). The application of choice theory can play a vital role in this regard.

The practice of corporal punishment is a violation of basic human needs stated in choice theory i.e. survival, love and belonging, freedom, fun and power. Choice theory clearly postulates that behaviour is a choice made by each individual and no one can control it without the person himself/herself. The practice of corporal punishment in schools distorts

81 behaviours by children who (according to the theory) seek to retain their own quality world within school. This leads to compensatory behaviours including a reluctance to attend school. Therefore, the application of choice theory for behaviour management will be beneficial instead of the practice of notorious corporal punishment in schools.

4.3 Attachment Theory

John Bowlby (1969) is the pioneer of attachment theory, the purpose of attachment behaviour for children is to obtain security, comfort and protection from the caregiver. This primary child-caregiver relationship has effects on relationships throughout childhood and can continue across the life-course. In this primary relationship the child develops ‘internal working model’ regarding themselves and the relationships with other people (Lesser and

Pope, 2011).

Attachment theory postulates that all human beings develop a form of attachment with his/her caregiver or any other person. The main purpose of this attachment is to receive care and support from the caregiver or any other person. The care and support may not only be material but also emotional and psychological. Over the last five decades a number of studies have reported on the validity of attachment theory, and have also reported that the quality and nature of attachments may vary basically depending on the behaviour of the caregiver (Wilkins, 2016).

Attachment theory further states that early positive attachment relationships in childhood between the child and the caregiver provide protection to the child when he/she is

82 confronted by threat or danger. In Bowlby’s view, the system of attachment is activated when the child is facing any danger, stress or discomfort. In such situations the caregiver is expected to provide the child with security and well-being (Walsh et al., 2008).

The person to whom the child is attached thus provides a safe and secure base for the child.

Children who feel secure and safely attached have a positive ‘internal working model’ which helps guide their behaviours, feelings and thoughts. Securely attached systems in childhood remain throughout the life of an individual. This provide an effective foundation for regularizing feelings, emotions, social competency, psycho-social comfort and exploration throughout life. On the other hand, insecurely attached children can lack confidence as they do not feel secure with their caregiver. Attachment disorders can result in psycho-social hindrances, unsuccessful emotional control, restricted exploration and reduction in social capability throughout life (Taylor and Stupica, 2015). To date, various researchers have reported that those children with insecure attachment are at a risk of behavioural problems, stress, psychopathology and poor cognitive development (Cyr et al.,

2010).

Up to the 1980s attachment research was mainly focused on secure and insecure attachment, later a further distinction was made that differentiated avoidant-insecure and ambivalent-insecure attachments. In the avoidant-insecure attachment the children were provided with predictable insensitive environment for care giving while in ambivalent- insecure attachment the children were provided with an unpredictable environment; sometimes sensitive other times less so (Wilkins, 2016).

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The situation for children becomes worse when they remain with a maltreating caregiver i.e. parents, teachers or anyone else. This type of situation is conflicting and difficult for the child as he/she needs contact with these people and yet feels the fear of maltreatment at the same time. This can create a state of depression, anxiety and behavioural issues for the child, which is known as disorganized attachment (Wilkins, 2016). If the caregiver is unpredictable, rejecting and maltreating the child then this leads to insecure attachment.

These children may become more defensive in order to protect themselves from hurt and pain (Riley, 2011). Bowlby’s early work show that the bereft or detached child experiences psychological pain, desolation, anguish, apathy and extracation. Bowlby reported that the impacts of these separations are disastrous, ranging from delinquency and mental health issues (Holmes, 1993).

Secure attachment is based on the philosophy that a caregiver responds to the needs of the child consistently and, having the ability to predict it, an ‘internal working model’ develops in the child boosting his/her confidence and slowly developing independence. This type of attachment makes the environment where the child lives or learns a safe and secure place.

This type of attachment has serious implications for teacher-student relationships in schools. When a securely attached child at home enters school and finds the teacher to be consistent and dependable, the child finds ‘a home away from home’. On the other hand, if the teacher is the opposite of what the child expects then it may lead to insecure attachment in school and loss of motivation for learning (Riley, 2011).

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4.3.1 Application of Attachment Theory to Corporal Punishment

Attachment theory explains feelings of self-worth, self-efficacy and control in an individual. The application of attachment theory to education is in developing relationships where the teacher or primary caregiver is a secure and reliable person for the child through whom he/she can safely discover the surrounding world. If the teacher or the caregiver is giving pain to the child it may develop negative relationships in the mind of the child regarding the teacher or the caregiver. If the child already has insecure attachment relationships in the home this will accentuate and compound negative impacts on the internalised attachment working model. This is particularly relevant where parents support the use of corporal punishment.

Schools have great impacts on the students social and academic development. In schools where students believe that their social and academic needs were to be fulfilled showed great outputs. Those students who feel secure in school and have a sense of belonging to the school report with minimum depression, low or no social rejection and no other issues related to the school. These students have good academic achievements and minimum behavioural issues (Gagnon et al., 2014).

4.4 Ecological Systems Theory

Ecological System theory takes whole system effects on human development into consideration. The theory was developed by Urie Bronfenbrenner (1986) in order to understand human development within the person’s own environment in the context of systemic relationships. It is applicable from an individual perspective as well as the development of organizations. Bronfenbrenner identified four system layers which are; 1)

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Microsystem referring to interpersonal relationships, roles and activities which a developing person experiences related to personality, temperament and the belief systems of other people with whom he or she interacts or even to the material and physical features,

2) Mesosystem describes the linkages between the microsystem and 3) the Exosystem, which is the combination of social systems on which the developing person does not have any influence. These may be decisions, contingencies, events and policies, 4) the

Macrosystem is in reality the ‘blue prints’ of a culture and its sub-culture. These are the patterns of customs, opportunities, resources, way of living, beliefs and value patterns. In addition to these four layers a further layer, known as the Chronosystem is also proposed based on the time-dimension which has an influence on all levels of ecological systems.

Interactions between the levels may either be short or long-term in the life span of an individual or in the socio-historical time dimension in which the individual lives (Johnson,

2008).

Modern human developmental theories support that development occurs as a result of the interaction between the individual and the environment. Human development is assumed to be the product of four properties which are; 1) person, 2) context, 3) process and 4) time

(Ettekal and Mahoney, 2017).

Ecological system theory provides a holistic approach to research in many areas of interest and provides a framework by which to explain how the physical environment, socio- cultural, psychological and biological factors affect the wellbeing of an individual (Bone,

2015). This model suggests that violence is the outcome of various factors including individual factors, interpersonal relationships between proximal individuals, and the

86 interplay between individuals, cultural, social and environmental factors. In order to understand and modify these factors each should be addressed at their level of existence

(Saraw, 2009). Ecological system theory is one of the major advances in human development in the last few decades, built on the work of Vygotsky, Piaget, Erikson and

Freud (Rappleyea, 2009).

4.4.1 Ecological System Theory, Corporal Punishment and Child Protection

Ecological systems theory reflects the complexity of human behaviour; understanding social structure, culture, values, beliefs and individual characteristics helps to explain how people perceive different things (Lonne et al., 2016). It provides a framework for understanding how different layers of context and a particular school link to play a vital role in the student learning process. Student success in school is multi-determined by the personal characteristics of the student, individual experiences and the major influence of society and culture (Downer and Myers, 2010). The detailed analysis of environmental influences by Bronfenbrenner suggested various ways in which the development of child can be optimised. These include nurturing and encouraging the relationships with the adult and relative freedom (Shaffer, 2009).

Child protection is a multifaced phenomenon and a multidimensional approach is therefore required to deal with. The implication for its prevention, assessment and intervention is that these processes cannot be based on a single factor to the exclusion of others within the child’s ecological system. The purpose of child protection cannot be achieved if research does not explore interactions and associations between various elements related to the issue.

The core of child protection is to prevent abuse and violence, so that a child may enjoy

87 good health, remain safe, achieve and enjoy, achieve economic well-being and make a positive contribution to the society in which they live (Saraw, 2009).

In developing understanding of the influences on the corporal punishment of children, the process of mapping the social environment provides a useful conceptual structure. The practice of corporal punishment at the microsystem level is one that inflicts pain and can induce feelings of anger, resentment and alienation in the individual child. This experience at a microsystem level can have significant influences on the child development process.

The Mesosystem contains the linkages between the microsystem and the exosystem. A better understanding of this layer is important to develop sustainable intervention programme. Exosystems have great influences on child development but the child little power to influence them, although through internalising the practice of corporal punishment and violence they may continue to feel justified in supporting and perpetrating it as adults. Thus, the exosystem play a key role in either increasing or decreasing the practice of corporal punishment. Legislation and policies at this level need to be developed in order to have a more clear and precise child protection strategy. The macrosystem contains the ‘blueprints’ of a society ranging from socio-cultural and traditional factors to religious influences. To change corporal punishment and child protection in the macrosystem what actions and social relations are inconceivable, inevitable, natural and normal needs to be clarified and made explicit (Garbarino, 2005).

4.5 Summary

William Glasser’s choice theory postulates that behaviour is the personal choice of every individual and no one can control it. Attempts to control it through corporal punishment

88 distorts behavioural choices and leads inevitably to negative impacts on the child’s ‘quality world’. John Bowlby’s attachment theory states that attachments are of two types i.e. secure and insecure attachments. The practice of corporal punishment can create disorganized attachment between the child and the teacher which hampers learning and motivational processes of the child. This is particularly severe where the child experiences unpredictable approaches to child rearing in the home, which are sometimes caring and other times violent such as happens with excessive corporal punishment. Ecological system theory accentuates the importance of understanding relationships between social, legal, religious and cultural aspects, the individual child and their immediate exosystem where cultural norms are played out.

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Chapter 5

Research Context and Methodology

5.1 Preamble

In the previous chapters the conceptual and theoretical framework of the study were discussed. In this chapter I describe how the study was conducted. Explanation and justification of methodological choices are discussed in order to have a clear and precise understanding of the methodology of the study.

5.2 Research in Context

Before going to discuss the methodology of the study it is important to know about the factors which motivated me to conduct my research on the issue of corporal punishment practiced in schools of Pakistan. In the early 1990s when I started my schooling, soon after the Government of Pakistan ratified the UNCRC, I was admitted to a Government

Primary School, Asota Sharif in the Swabi District, which is my native land. In the period of my primary education the practice of corporal punishment was at its peak.

After completing my primary education I started secondary schooling in a Government

High School, Asota Sharif of the Swabi District and the phenomenon of corporal punishment prevailed up to the completion of my secondary school education in 2001.

Following this left the school and started college education. At that time, I was not aware of the negative consequences of corporal punishment and being a student I believed that the practice of corporal punishment was legitimate as it was the right of the teacher to practice it for the betterment of students. Teachers are considered as

‘Spiritual Parents’ in our society so they also have the right to punish the children as

90 our parents do. To be very honest I was punished a lot by my teachers in school which makes me reluctant in expressing myself and somehow aggressive as well, sometimes

I do have knowledge about an issue or something but due to the psychological fear of criticism and punishment I do not express it.

In the year 2014, I was admitted for my Ph.D. studies at the Department of Social Work

University of Peshawar, Pakistan and in the same year I also had an opportunity to conduct a survey for the Federal Ombudsman of Pakistan on the issue of corporal punishment practiced in schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. During the study when I was collecting data in Ogai, a village in the Manshera District, I saw a small child aged 9-

10 years with his younger sister who was holding his hand to guide him. I was surprised to see that and asked the child what had happened to his eyes; he replied that when he was born one of his eyes did not have any sight. I then asked him about the other eye and his reply shocked me and at that moment I decided to conduct my Ph.D. research on the issue of corporal punishment. He replied that one of his teachers in school said to him, ‘One day I will hit your other eye with a stick so you may not see completely in future’ and one day that happened he hit him in the eye with a stick and he lost his eye sight completely. I asked him if he had complained to anyone and he told me that the elders of the area resolved the matter, that it was unintentional and the teacher was also like a father so his parents forgave the teacher. Now in 2017 while writing this chapter I still remember that child and wonder how his life will be.

After the decision to conduct my research on the issue of corporal punishment I then searched the Central Library University of Peshawar database to assess whether any

91 research had been conducted on the said issue. I found a Ph.D. titled “The Impact of

Corporal Punishment on Students in Public Sector Schools: A Case Study of Selected

Boys Schools in District Multan” by Safdar Hussain (2008-09). This study was quantitative in nature exploring the attitude and impacts about the phenomenon in

Multan (Punjab).

Soon after that I realized that this is not only an issue of teachers or students, other stakeholders are also involved. Therefore, this study applies a holistic approach to find out about its practice in detail and the politics of policy makers, parents and the wider community members towards abolishing the issue.

5.3 Purpose of the Study

Three major purposes have been described by qualitative research methodologists; which are to explore, describe and explain a phenomenon of interest. The purpose of qualitative research is to develop understanding or to discover a phenomenon (Marshall and Rossman, 1999). Every research has a specific purpose and objectives which provide a direction and framework. In qualitative studies, one’s approach has been guided by ontological, epistemological and methodological aspects of study (Ahmed,

2017).

The ontological approach for this study is to problematize the practice of corporal punishment in schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and not to take for granted that it is normal or acceptable. In taking an epistemological approach I explore how the practice

92 of corporal punishment is known and understood. The focus of my approach is on how different stakeholders discuss ‘why’ corporal punishment occurs, how they understand the ‘extent’ of the problem and its effects on the children in terms of social and psychological impacts and on the learning and motivation on children towards the school.

The purpose of this study is further understanding of attitudes towards the use of corporal punishment in schools, the nature of the practice and intensity of the issue as well as its sociological and psychological impacts on children. The study gathers data on the perceptions of various stakeholders related to the phenomenon of corporal punishment. The study also provides an analysis of the government’s approach for dealing with corporal punishment and highlights the strengths and weaknesses of this approach.

Social Work is a problem-solving field (Ahmed, 2017), therefore this study will provide guidelines and recommendations for the policy makes for abolishing the practice of corporal punishment in schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Pakistan.

5.4 Universe and Population of the Study

Universe is the composition of all the items or units in a research study while the population refers to all the items from which the desired information is needed. Both these terms are often confused and spoken interchangeably. To make a distinction between them we may say that population is finite and universe is infinite (Kothari,

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2004), while on the other hand we may say that population or targeted population is the composition of people or elements on which the research focuses and on which the findings can be generalized (Bless et al., 2006).

District Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was selected as the universe for the study for the following reasons;

1. It is the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and has a rich history all over the world.

2. The practice of corporal punishment is also the same as in other parts of Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa and Pakistan.

3. Peshawar is the main hub for all government and non-government practices

which will benefit the researcher in the data collection process.

4. The main offices of all the non-government organizations are located in

Peshawar which are beneficial for the researcher.

5. Child psychologists are only easily available in Peshawar which will benefit the

researcher.

6. The researcher has been living in Peshawar since 2005 and is aware of the socio-

economic and cultural values of the people in Peshawar which will help the

researcher in data collection process.

The study population is composed of teachers, parents, child psychologists, religious scholars and non-government organizations workers.

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5.5 Aims and Objectives of the Study

The main aims and objectives of this research study are as follows:

1. To examine the perceived nature and extent of corporal punishment in

secondary schools of Peshawar.

2. To understand the perceived social and psychological impacts of corporal

punishment on children.

3. To understand the perceptions of teachers, parents, religious scholars, non-

government organization workers and child psychologists about the practice of

corporal punishment.

4. To assess the strengths and weaknesses of government’s anti-corporal measures

in the opinion of stakeholders.

5. To suggest research based policy recommendations on corporal punishment.

5.6 Research questions of the study

The study will answer the following three research questions:

1. What philosophy guides the use of corporal punishment in Pakistani schools?

2. What are the perceived social and psychological impacts of corporal

punishment on children?

3. How might the use of corporal punishment in schools be minimized?

5.7 Research Design and Methodology

By the research design, social scientists mean to specify the way from which data will be created, analysed and interpreted. It also enables the researcher to draw descriptive,

95 explanatory and interpretive inferences from it (Perri and Bellamy, 2012), while the

‘methodology’ is related to the overall approach to the issues or problems that will address them. ‘Qualitative methodology’ refers to the broad spectrum of research procedures that produce descriptive data, spoken words or people’s own writings and observable behaviours (Taylor et al., 2016).

“Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be

counted”

(Albert Einstein 1879-1955)

Qualitative research frameworks are becoming more important for inquiry in social sciences such as in education, community development and social work (Marshall and

Rossman, 1999). Qualitative approaches have become more visible in the 1990s and from the beginning of 21st century (Creswell, 2014).

Avis (2005: 04) reported that qualitative studies are important in understanding and exploring social behaviour. Furthermore, quoting Popay (1992) she states that qualitative study ‘explores the meaning people attach to their experiences and identifies and describes the social structures and processes that shapes these meanings’. Taylor et al., (2016) note that qualitative research design remains flexible though it follows certain methods and these can be specified as it proceeds. I have adopted this flexibility in the present study.

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Lincoln et al., (2011: 97) state that “Qualitative research … consists of a set of interpretive, material practices that makes the world visible. These practices ... turn the world into a series of representations including fieldnotes, interviews, conversations, photographs, recordings and memos to the self. At this level, qualitative research involves an interpretive, naturalistic approach to the world”.

Qualitative research places emphasis on the values of human or animal knowing in the social world and re-presenting interpretations of the phenomenon under study, on the importance of ‘understanding’ and the study of the ‘lived experiences’ of people in a social context (Snape and Spencer, 2013). One aim of qualitative research is to describe a problem from the participant ‘point of view’ through in-depth interviews and observations (Orb et al., 2001).

5.7.1 Cross-sectional Study

Different types of research design are available in social research, such as longitudinal designs, case studies, experimental and cross-sectional research (Vaus, 2001). This study is based on a cross-sectional research design for multiple reasons.

Firstly, cross-sectional research involves the collection of data about a phenomenon at a single point of time (Babbie, 2006). These studies are less expensive and easier to conduct than some others such as longitudinal designs (Salkind, 2010). The main advantage of cross-sectional studies is that the researcher collects the data from different people in a short period of time (Shaffer, 2009). Cross-sectional studies are

97 often used to describe and evaluate a particular phenomenon of discussion (Raingruber,

2017). Babbie (2006) reported that qualitative cross-sectional studies are the best design available in social research for the researcher who is interested in collecting original data about a phenomenon and where the population is too large to be observed directly.

As a consequence this is now one of the most widely used research designs in social research (Vaus, 2001).

Cross-sectional study is the most suitable method for this research. It will obtain original data about a specific population rapidly at a single point of time. It will also be less expensive as no repetition of observational data is required and as this is an academic study with a limited time framework it is the most suitable research design for the nature of the study. The status of a ‘data snapshot’ is also a potential weakness, in that views may change over time. However, they are representative at the time of data collection.

5.7.2 Sampling

It is rarely possible to collect data from a whole population and researchers overcome this practical limitation by studying a small portion of it, known as a sample. From the sample the researcher may seek to generalize findings to the whole population under study (Levin and Fox, 2006). This is only appropriate if a sample (of attitudes, views or people, for example) is representative. Thus findings from the study might be generalized to the whole population but difference exist on the extent of generalizability

(Vanderstoep and Johnston, 2009).

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A main division in sampling strategies is made between probability and non-probability sampling. Probability is a rigorous approach suited to statistical research but it is less appropriate for qualitative studies. Qualitative studies tend to adopt non-probability sampling techniques for the selection process (Ritchie et al., 2003). The selection of a study sample is an important step in qualitative studies and will depend on the purpose of the research.

The sample must have the characteristics of the target population so that it may be as representative as possible within practical constraints (Ary et al., 2010). The advantage of sampling in social research are; it is less time consuming, cost effective and it is the most effective way for gathering data if the population is infinite or extremely large

(Bless et al., 2006).

5.7.3 Sampling procedure

In non-probability sampling the chances of being selected within a sample are not known, as in probability sampling, but the characteristics and attributes of required for inclusion within a sample become the criterion for sample selection. This feature makes this well-suited for in-depth studies on an issue (Ritchie et al., 2003).

Selecting a sample based on knowledge of the total population relevant to the field of study, characteristics of the population relevant to the topic as identified in previous research (such as cultural values, occupation, age and gender) and addressing the purpose of the research is an appropriate method. This type of selection is called

99 purposive sampling. It is a non-probability method of sampling in which the researcher selects the sample based on his/her own cultural knowledge, experience and judgment as to which will be the most suitable and representative sample (Babbie, 2006).

Benoot et al., (2016: 02) quoting Patton (2002) has given a more precise and clear definition of purposive sampling, according to them “The logic and power of purposeful sampling lie in selecting information-rich cases for study in depth. Information-rich cases are those from which one can learn a great deal about issues of central importance to the purpose of the inquiry, thus the term purposeful sampling. Studying information-rich cases yields insights and in-depth understanding rather than empirical generalizations.”

Thus, in purposive sampling the participant’s selection is based on the assumption that the characteristics and features of the participants will explore and develop in-depth understanding related to the phenomenon under study. The characteristics of a sample may be socio-demographic, roles, experience and behaviours related to a specific issue

(Ritchie et al., 2003). Or, as Palys (2008: 697) highlights, “think of the person or place or situation that has the largest potential for advancing your understanding and look there”.

To enable capture of a range of understandings of the issue, purposive sampling takes a ‘maximum variation’ approach in which the researcher identifies a breadth of characteristics in the target population and selects a sample that matches with these

100 identified characteristics (Oppong, 2013). For the purposeful selection of participants and sites, four aspects are important: a) the area where the research will take place, b) the participants from whom the data will be collected, c) the phenomenon about which the data will be collected and d) the process of data collection (Creswell, 2003).

It is important that in purposive sample selection the researcher remains impartial and attempts to work without bias, in addition to having the desired knowledge and experience of the issue under study to attain a level of reliability (Kothari, 2004).

Supervision, discussion and standardization of data analysis support this. On a practical level, besides the representative sample characteristics, availability and willingness along with communication skills and expressiveness of participants is also a pre- requisite (Palinkas et al., 2013).

Suri (2011) further identified sub sections in purposive sampling techniques in which stratified purposeful sampling is one. Stratified purposeful sampling means ‘sample within samples’ and every stratum will be homogeneous in nature. The purpose of this is ‘to capture major variations’. It is important in studies where there are variations in the phenomenon and any factor related to the phenomenon is varied. Stratified purposive samples aim is to have different groups of participants to gain more insight of the issues from different perspectives (Ritchie et al., 2003).

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The aim of purposive sampling is not to get largest sample size but to select individuals, things or places that will provide rich information and which are best suited to the research purpose and objectives (Lodico et al., 2010).

5.7.4 Sample size

In qualitative studies the problem of sample size is ever present. This issue needs to be addressed for ensuring research credibility and reliability.

Although qualitative studies usually draw on small samples, the method for selection of these samples is a matter of debate (Onwuegbuzie and Leech, 2007). Sample size is an important factor in research design as it should help in increasing knowledge about the concept under study whilst ensuring that research resources are utilized ethically and efficiently. In qualitative research there are no hard and fast rules available for the choice of sample size, such as in quantitative studies. Sample size in qualitative studies depends on the research objectives and researcher choice (Burmeister and Aitken,

2012).

Sample size in qualitative studies usually follow the principle of ‘saturation’ which means that the sample should be extended to reach a point from which no new information will be gained. On the other hand, the sample should not be too small that it misses new information nor too large to make the data vague. Some factors should be kept in mind while estimating the sample size; the study design and qualitative

102 methods, nature of the topic, scope of the study and the quality of the data (Powers and

Knapp, 2006).

The concept of ‘saturation’ has been extended to include the concept of ‘information power’. It states that if a participant holds more rich information about the problem under study then the sample size can be lower. An assessment of information power largely depends on; a) the research objectives, b) the specificity of the sample, c) established theory in use, d) dialogue quality and e) strategy for analysis (Malterud et al., 2015, see Figure 5.1 below).

Figure 5.1: Variation in Information Power

Adopted from Malterud et al., (2015: 04)

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The sample for this study and its size have been selected taking each of the factors reviewed above into account. My aims, as stated in the introduction to this chapter, are narrow and specific with a clear focus on views about the use of corporal punishment in schools. Theories on corporal punishment have been reviewed to find that explanations are limited sufficiently to be applied to the data collected. The need for dialogue and depth about the issue is strong but the sample should be of sufficient size to allow comparison across cases, which in the present study are views about corporal punishment. Underpinning sample selection is the hypothesis that different stakeholders will present different views depending on their cultural, religious or organizational affiliation. I have therefore selected a sample of fifty stakeholders representing five groups (see Table 5.1) to meet these criteria.

Table 5.1: Sample Size and Stakeholder Group

S No Population Sample Size

1 Teachers 10

2 Child Psychologists 10

3 Religious Scholars 10

4 Non-Government’s Organization’s Workers 10

5 Parents 10

Total 50

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5.8 The study population and sample

As the literature reviewed in Chapter 2 and 3 reveals, several researchers have conducted studies on the issue of corporal punishment practiced in schools, looking at different aspects of the problem. This study differs from previous studies as it applies a holistic approach to gain insight into the issue in more detail. Corporal punishment is a multi-dimensional phenomenon and for understanding its enduring quality in Pakistan its many aspects need to be studied. For this purpose, various stakeholders were included in the study from one district in Pakistan who were involved in this phenomenon either by practicing it or struggling for its prohibition. The study population is composed of teachers, parents, child psychologists, religious scholars and non-government organization workers.

5.8.1 Teachers

Teachers can simply be regarded as the primary perpetrators of corporal punishment in schools. The purpose of selecting the teachers in the sample is to obtain their perception about the practice of corporal punishment. Teachers are regarded as spiritual parents in

Pakistan (known as ‘loco parentis’ in West) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in this position, they have the liberty to practice corporal punishment for the sake of the betterment of the child without knowing its long term consequences on children.

Speaking with teachers will help in exploring the factors which contribute to its practice in schools from those who are inside the ‘mesosystem’ layer of the ecological system.

Furthermore, from teachers I will also be able to know more about the workability of the government Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Act and the teachers’ opinions of it.

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5.8.2 Parents

Parents play a key role in child development and schooling. Parent-teachers associations (PTA’s) are in place in the schools of Pakistan in order to ensure the quality of education for children. However, many parents also support corporal punishment for maintaining discipline in school (Lwo and Yuan, 2011). The purpose of selecting parents into the sample is to know about their perception regarding the corporal punishment and to gain an understanding about their child’s motivation towards school and attitude towards learning, providing a window on the micro level of the ecological system.

5.8.3 Child Psychologists

Previous research has found an association between corporal punishment and negative psychological outcomes. The aim of selecting the child psychologists in the sample is to gain their views regarding the practice of corporal punishment in schools in Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa. Minimum attention has been given to the psychological aspects of corporal punishment in Pakistan despite the potential for long-term impacts for children throughout their academic career and beyond. Data from child psychologists will enable a more in-depth insight of the child psychologist’s perspective particularly focused on the Pakistani context .

5.8.4 Religious Scholars

Pakistan is an Islamic country where religion dominates the routine daily life of every individual. The teaching of Islam supports corporal punishment in some contexts but

106 with rules and guidelines for its practice which perpetrators do not always follow.

However, the teachings of Islam also guide its followers to be kind and have mercy for children and women. Religious scholars have been selected to explore their understandings of the way in which corporal punishment is practiced in Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa and their interpretations of religious guidance in this context.

5.8.5 Non-governments organization workers

Different types of non-government organizations work in Pakistan for the rights of children, child protection and the prohibition of corporal punishment in all places.

These include the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC), Save the Children and Sahil. The literature review highlighted some of the contributions of these organizations. The purpose of selecting a sample from NGO’s is to understand more about their role in combating the issue of corporal punishment and the issues they faced in relation to its elimination from schools.

5.9 Tools of Data Collection

Data has been collected using the following qualitative research methods.

1. In-depth interviews with the participants

2. Field notes and observations

3. Analysis of available documents

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These methods will facilitate detailed insight of the issue of corporal punishment in schools in the area under study and the assembly of a holistic image of it taking account of different stakeholder perspectives.

5.9.1 In-depth Interviews

Qualitative research mainly draws on four types for the data collection: a) non- participant observation, b) participation observation in the setting, c) analysis of material culture and documents and d) in-depth interviews (Marshall and Rossman,

1999). In-depth interviews in qualitative research are one of the main methods for collecting the data (Legard et al., 2003) with the advantage that rich data can be obtained quickly (Marshall and Rossman, 1999).

An interview may be defined as a conversation between two people for a specific purpose. It produces data only through verbal conversation and this feature makes it a primary component for qualitative inquiry (Taylor et al., 2007).

The format of an in-depth interview may vary from situation to situation but in general the interview will start with an introduction obtaining consent for interview and recording (Informed consent form can be found in Appendix–B). Anonymity and confidentiality of the data will also be discussed with the participant. In the second phase data related to the main theme will be collected but in this stage the researcher will be more cautious in order that his knowledge of the topic may not influence the

108 participants response and the final stage is of winding down and closure (Adams and

Cox, 2008, see Figure 5.2).

Figure 5.2: Stages of Discussion in In-depth Interviews

Introduction Easy, opening questions; more surface level, Background

and contextual information, Definitional questions

Core Part of questioning and discussion is more in-depth, move from

Interview circumstantial to attitudinal/evaluative/explanatory

questions, move from general to more specific, Follow

chronological order

Winding down Questions looking to the future, suggestions

Adopted From: Arthur and Nazroo (2003: 114)

The in-depth interview involves face-to-face interaction between the researcher and the participant which provides an opportunity for the researcher to probe the issue in more detail. The in-depth interview is unstructured and usually has open ended questions or probes, which are few in number but planned to elicit participant opinions and views

(Legard et al., 2003).

The first important feature of in-depth interviews is that they combine both structure and flexibility. The second feature of in-depth interview is that it is interactive in nature.

Thirdly it provides an opportunity to the researcher to gain more in-depth information by probing and fourthly it has the potential to generate the creation of new knowledge

109 at any stage and finally the physical encounter is essential to supplement speech with body language, which is impossible in telephonic or postal interviews (Legard et al.,

2003).

In-depth interviews are based on the verbal communication between the researcher and the participants. These are usually used in descriptive and exploratory studies. The quality of data collected through in-depth interviews mainly depends on the skills of the interviewer and the design of the interview (Mathers et al., 1998).

To enable collection of a minimum of demographic and personal data, and to ensure some consistency across interviews with the different stakeholder groups I used an interview guide for the data collection process. The interview guide was composed of both open ended and closed questions. Closed questions were incorporated to obtain demographic information from participants while open ended questions were aimed at addressing the research questions to gain the opinions of respondents. The interview guides have also been developed in English but the data was collected in the language which was most comfortable for the participants, including Urdu and Pashto.

5.9.2 Field Notes and observation

Field notes are also an important tool of data collection for qualitative researchers.

When compiling the field notes it is important for the researcher to document what they have seen, experienced or heard (Streubert and Carpenter, 2011). Field notes are highly descriptive and cover participants, activities, settings and behaviours. The details of

110 field notes should be presented in a way that enables the reader to feel that he/she were present at the time (Merriam, 2009).

Field notes helps in clarifying and understanding what is going on in the field, making use of reflection in relation to the research questions (Yin, 2016). Their completion should be planned in advance, allowing adequate attention and time to be given for completion (Silverman and Patterson, 2015).

The main reason for selecting field notes as a method of data collection was the sensitivity of the issue under study. I anticipated that stakeholders involved in the practice of corporal punishment may not answer or not give complete answers to direct questions. Therefore, before and after the interview I positioned myself as a non- participant observer in order to observe and record any relevant activities and behaviours. For this purpose I kept a reflective diary as fieldnotes for myself.

5.9.3 Analysis of Documents

In addition to in-depth interviews and field notes, document analysis has also been carried out for the purpose of accomplishing the research objectives. Documents include all the material gathered prior to the interviews, including; official records, newspapers, corporate records, government records and historical accounts (Merriam,

2009). The advantages that are associated with the analysis of documents are that it provides rich information with lower or even no cost, it is helpful in those cases where subjects are inaccessible and it also provides the opportunity for historical analysis of

111 the phenomenon under study (Monette et al., 2011). It is important for the researcher to know which documents are important for the study, to have access and to be clear about what the documents represent (Jupp, 2006). The documents reviewed provided relevant background about the research topic and stakeholder groups. They included;

Government’s reports, non-government’s organizations reports, religious texts and newspapers to enable an in-depth understanding of the issue of corporal punishment and its motives relevant to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

5.10 Data collection process

Data collection was in three stages. Firstly, at the pre-data collection stage I met with different stakeholders in order to introduce myself and receive their consent for the data collection process as well as their opinions about the interview guide.

The second stage involved piloting the interview guide. The purpose of pre-testing was to check the workability of the research instrument for the achievement of the research objectives. Another purpose of the pre-testing was to check participant’s understanding of the questions and make an assessment of the time that an interview was likely to take

(Hussain, 2009). The pre-testing was conducted from 16-31 July, 2017. At this stage I also used an audio recorder for data collection to test the viability of using recording in the field. However, this experiment failed for a number of reasons including the security situation of the region, lack of a recording research culture in the country and in some cases shyness of the participants. After facing these issues the idea of audio recording was dropped for the final stage of data collection.

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The third stage was the final or main stage of data collection. In this stage data were collected from child psychologists, teachers, parents, non-government organization workers and religious scholars. The data was collected in Peshawar. This stage was conducted from 01st August to 30th September, 2017. After data collection the data, which was recorded in note form, was kept in a locked cupboard to ensure confidentiality, and coded in electronic form on an encrypted computer.

5.11 Data Analysis

After the data collection the process of data analysis was started. For the purpose of data analysis each interview was coded and transcribed in a separate file including a description of the personal attributes of the participants. The interview guide was in

English but the interviews were conducted in Urdu and Pashto languages. In order to catch the relevant information the interviews were read again and again for a more clear and in-depth understanding of the phenomenon.

Using computer software in qualitative studies is associated with both fears and hopes.

The fears are that computers will take your analysis as you put your text in the software and the software will analyze it as it was developed by the manufacturer. It is also assumed that some problems remain unresolved by the use of software as it may not authentically reflect textual themes. Hopes are that software will increase analytic consistency and speed, enhance display features and afford the ability to consolidate the data. Different types of software are available for qualitative data analysis such as

NUD*IST, ETHNOGRAPH, NVivo and QUALPRO (Marvasti, 2004).

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Initially it was decided that NVivo version 10 would be used for the data analysis process. However, following review, it was decided that as the sample was not so large and the categories in samples are different from one another so it would not be fruitful to use NVivo. Every individual had their own story to tell and they told it in their own way, therefore it preferable to draw out themes from the data by manually analyzing it.

In the first step, broad, overarching themes were drawn from the data from which organizing themes were developed. In the final stage, global themes were drawn from the organizing themes (Stirling, 2001). The analysis is descriptive guided by discourse analysis techniques, selected as the most suitable and appropriate method for addressing the research objectives (Hootman, 1992).

5.11.1 Discourse Analysis

The qualitative researcher deals with data in the form of words, pictures and other textual forms. In the present study, these data are captured in the form of interviews, field notes and documents and are based on participant’s personal experiences and their own perspective. The qualitative researcher aims to draw in depth conclusions from these representations of people’s comments, observations, answers to questions and so forth (Ary et al., 2010), that allow for new or alternative interpretations of the research topic. The data gathered for the present study has been analysed using discourse analysis that combines the various perspectives and dimensions on the issue under study; that of the corporal punishment of children in schools. In this analysis interdiscursive and intertextual relationships, along with intra-discursive and intra- textual relationships are considered (Wodak, 2008). This method of data analysis is helpful when considering a social issue such as corporal punishment. Rogers (2004)

114 proposes that discourse analysis is based on eight core principles which are; 1) it addresses social issues, 2) it discourses power relations, 3) it constitutes culture and society, 4) it works ideologically, 5) it has historical aspect, 6) for understanding the relationships between texts and society a socio-cognitive approach is needed, 7) it uses a systematic methodology for explanation and interpretation and 8) it is a scientific paradigm based on social commitment. Discourse analysis can play a vital role in educational research where the researcher explains, describes and interprets various educational issues and the relationships between the people related to these issues

(Rogers, 2004).

Discourse analysis can be envisaged as comprising six building elements. These are; 1)

Semiotic building which means to gather the situated meaning about knowledge and the ways of knowing, for example, how do respondents describe how they understand what corporal punishment is, what it does and so forth? 2) World building which means to gather the situated meaning about the real and unreal, abstract and concrete, absent and present, here and now and about impossible, possible and probable. For example, what worldview is demonstrated in the data that allows for the possibility of corporal punishment to be acceptable? 3) Activity building, which is referred to gather the situated meaning about the on-going and composed activities, for example, how are the actions of children interpreted? And also, the actions of adults in relation to children?

4) Socioculturally-situated identity and relationship building which means to gather situated meaning about the relationships and interaction between them, identities are described through accounts of beliefs, commitment, feelings, values and attitudes. 5)

Political building, which refers to gathering the situated meanings expressed about

‘social goods’, such as power and status and 6) Connection building which refers to the

115 development of a hypothesis or assumption about an interaction or phenomenon, that has some coherence, in this case, of relevance to corporal punishment in schools (Gee,

1999).

Some discourse analysts only regard documentary text and others only focus on naturally occurring interactions. However, in the social sciences the majority of qualitative research, and therefore discursive data, involves questions and answers whether it is small scale or large-scale research. The data is usually collected through interviews and, unless these are short and circumscribed by direct questions with limited options for answers, it is also the case that such interactions between researcher and respondent are complex. These interviews are a boundaried form of conversation on specific topics in agreed time but they are based on everyday talk. Different accounts have to be taken into consideration to assemble a valid description of a problem (Abell and Myers, 2008).

Following the linguistic turn in social science, researchers around the globe recognised the importance of language for developing public policy on an issue. Now the academician has deployed discourse analysis in order to have deep and significant insights into a problem which may have emerged through the use of other research methodologies, such as large scale surveys (Jacobs, 2006). The application of discourse analysis to the present study will therefore be helpful in developing research based policy guidelines in order to have a decisive plan for the elimination of corporal punishment, child protection and child welfare in Pakistan.

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In descriptive analysis the question of what, who, where, when and the extent are to be answered by identifying patterns within the phenomenon under study. This type of analysis is quite fruitful when we are focusing on a phenomenon which is not properly documented and a decisive policy or intervention is needed. In this type of analysis, the researcher tries to synthesize and summarize a wide range of diversity and refine the categories and themes from the study (Smith and Firth, 2011). Demographic information of the participants will be obtained by using SPSS software.

5.12 Ethical consideration

Ethical issues are always present in any form of research. In the research process tension can exist between the aims and objectives of the study and the need to make generalizations from the research findings for the betterment of others while maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of the participants (Orb et al., 2001).

A primary ethical principle is that of beneficence; to avoid harm and do good. Harm can be avoided by applying ethical principles in the research process. In qualitative studies, potential ethical conflicts prevail in how the researchers access the community under study and his/her influence on participants. The participant’s willingness to participate in a full understanding of the implications of the study (i.e. with informed consent) is of central importance (Orb et al., 2001). Risk to the participant can be avoided if the researcher follows certain principles, such as; voluntary participation, no harm to the participant, anonymity, confidentiality and following a professional code of ethics (Babbie, 2006).

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Generally, negative impacts can arise from three sources in qualitative studies a) the participant and researcher relationships, b) the researcher’s subjective understanding and its impacts on participants and c) the research design itself (Ramos, 1989). For ensuring the participants safety and security the following steps have been taken to avoid harm to the respondents.

5.12.1 Informed Consent

The underlying values for informed consent are the well-being and autonomy of an individual (Berg et al., 2001). Informed consent is globally recognised as an important component in conducting a research study. Informed consent underpins voluntarily participation in the research by individuals knowing and understanding the pros and cons of participating in the study. The structure of informed consent is usually in two parts; the first part is to provide participants with full and understandable information about the study and the second is formal acknowledgement by the participants of voluntarily participation (Marshall, 2007). Informed consent was obtained from the participants prior to the in-depth interviews and also for the audio recording at the pilot stage.

5.12.2 Anonymity and Confidentiality

Individuals who are participating in the study have the right to be protected by making the data confidential and ensuring that any identifying data or views are not shared with anyone except the researcher (Mark, 1996). Anonymity simply means that a reader cannot identify a participant by his/her response while confidentiality is related to the

118 researcher participant relationship as he/she knows the participant but must not disclose his/her identity publicly (Babbie, 2011). For ensuring the anonymity and confidentiality of participants the in-depth interviews have been coded. A unique code was attributed to every interview which is only known to the researcher and which will not be shared with anyone else. Interview data has been kept in separate files in the computer and no one has access to them except the researcher. Hard copies of the interview have been kept in a locked cupboard to which only the researcher has access.

5.13 Validity and Reliability

Validity means the success of a research method in answering or probing the research questions while reliability refers to the constancy of data by using a specific research method. Reliability denotes that using a measure will be reliable if it repeats the same results in same conditions if used by some other researcher (Taylor et al., 2007). The question of reliability in qualitative researches is often avoided, with researchers using other terms instead of reliability such as ‘confirmability’, ‘trustworthiness’,

‘consistency’ and ‘dependability’ (Lewis and Ritchie, 2003).

Quality or good qualitative research help in understanding a situation but the concept of reliability in qualitative studies can be vague and if it is set as an criterion for critically appraising qualitative studies than the consequences are not always positive

(Golafshani, 2003). For ensuring the reliability of the study I consider the concept of

‘trustworthiness’ as an important factor.

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Qualitative studies do not lend themselves to statistical calculation for testing validity.

Qualitative research aims to achieve a similar goal through other methods that are better suited to the nature of human inquiry (Brink, 1993). Brink (1993) reported that validity in qualitative research is related to the truthfulness and accuracy of the research findings. For a study to be valid it must represent the phenomenon as it exists and a valid tool or instrument is the one which actually measure what it is designed to be measured. Reliability is related to the stability, consistency and repeatability of information and also the researchers ability to accurately collect and record the information (Brink, 1993).

Qualitative researchers do not use strict methods for controlling variables nor do they manipulate the environment. In Social Work research, it is more important to focus on credibility to try to achieve the goal of reliability. Some methods have been proposed to enhance reliability in qualitative research such as using additional questions that probe the same subject but are phrased differently, taking a consistent and systematic approach across interviews and giving clear account of the method of data collection so that the research may be replicated in future (Alston and Bowles, 2003).

Validity is enhanced through certain research practices; such as; spending a sufficient amount of time in the field to catch rich information, triangulation of data from different sources, persistent observation, keeping a check on secondary documents, through feedback from the informants, paying attention to high quality data and researcher awareness of self to avoid bias (Cohen et al., 2011).

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The importance of reliability and validity in research cannot be ignored. In qualitative studies where the researcher focuses on a small number of cases, cross-checking of data through different means about the same phenomenon makes the reliability and validity possible (Scott and Morrison, 2006). This method of triangulation draws on various sources for data (Merriam, 2009) and was the approach adopted here, combining data collected through in-depth interviews, field notes and documents analysis whilst spending sufficient time (03 months) in the field.

5.14 Limitations of the Study

Marshall and Rossman (1999: 42) quoting Patton (1990) state that “there are no perfect research designs. There are always trade-offs”. Every research has certain limitations and the researcher must understand that every study has some restrictions and drawbacks. It is the responsibility of every researcher to highlight these, as I have for example noted above, that the results of qualitative study are not generalizable for the whole population and claims that can be made must not over reach the data collected

(Pitney and Parker, 2009). As Marshall (1996) reports, qualitative research is transferable but not generalizable. Therefore, the findings of this study will not be generalizable to the whole of Pakistan but it may flag up issues that are relevant to the rest of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and some other provinces.

The sample is of sufficient size and composition to obtain a cross-section of views.

However, it is not, and never was intended to be, representative of the different stakeholder groups.

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Data collection for this study is limited to the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and

Peshawar for practical reasons including; access to and identification of participants for interview, financial constraints, an inability for extensive travelling and the law and order situation in the country. My decision to interview adults, and to exclude children, was a difficult but pragmatic choice as the research focus is on the perspectives of adults who have a care or legal responsibility for children, on perpetrators rather than victims.

It may be possible in the future to test out the themes identified in the present study, for example, with children in schools to get their perspective on the issue or to widen the participant base to include a probability sample with a questionnaire design. This would require considerably more resources than I have at my disposal.

5.15 Summary

Every research study has a specific purpose. The aim of this study is to explore the phenomenon of corporal punishment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa schools and to understand the perception of various stakeholders involved in it. The selection of this topic is based on my personal experiences of the issue. The study was conducted in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan and district Peshawar was selected as the universe of the study while the population was consisting of teachers, parents, child psychologists, religious scholars and non-government organizations workers.

The study was qualitative in nature and was a cross-sectional study. A purposive sampling technique was adopted as this method enables sample selection based on the researcher’s knowledge, experiences and awareness of the research purpose. A sample

122 of 50 participants were selected 10 each from parents, teachers, child psychologists, religious scholars and non-government organization workers.

The data was collected through three methods including in-depth interviews, field notes and documentary analysis. Interview data was analysed manually by the researcher as each and every interview has its own point of view so it was not appropriate to use any of the qualitative data analysis software. Ethical issues were kept in mind in the data collection and analysis stage and informed consent was obtained from the participants.

Data was coded to ensure the anonymity and confidentiality of participants and a triangulation method was used for the data analysis process to facilitate validity and reliability. A key limitation of the study is that the findings are not generalizable to the whole of Pakistan but nevertheless they offer an insight to a cross-section of views from people living in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

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Chapter 6

Participants views about Corporal Punishment

6.1 Preamble

This chapter aims to present the key findings of the study through application of a discourse analysis method. This data analysis methodology is well suited due to the complex nature of the phenomenon under study. The data has been analysed with respect to six building elements which are; semiotic building, world building, activity building, socioculturally-situated identity and relationship building, political building and connection building (Gee, 1999). The literature review displayed that there are different perspectives regarding corporal punishment based on the educational experience, age and gender. Therefore, it is important to highlight these attributes of the sample.

6.2 Demographic Information of the Participants

6.2.1 Teachers

Over half of the teachers were in the age group of 25-40 while the remaining four were aged 41-55 years. All ten teachers were male (as the researcher only collected the data from male teachers dur to cultural issues). Eight of the teachers were qualified to

Masters level while the remaining two had Bachelor degrees. Furthermore, in terms of professional qualification, five had M.Ed (Master of Education) degrees, two had B.Ed

(Bachelor of Education) degrees), one had a PTC (Primary Teaching Course) certificate, one had a DM (Drawing Master) certificate and the remaining teacher had a CT (Certificate of Teaching). Six of the teachers were SST (Secondary School

Teachers), three had CT (Certificate of Teaching) posts and one was a DM (Drawing

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Master). All the teachers had their professional interest in a teaching career. In terms of experience three of the teachers had been teaching between 1-10 years, three for 11-20 years and the remaining four for 21-30 years.

6.2.2 Religious Scholars

Among the religious scholars two were aged 26-40 years, five were aged 41-55 years and the remaining three were in the aged between 56-70 years. All the religious scholars were male (as majority of the religious scholars in Pakistan are male). Eight of the participants had qualified from Wafaq-ul-Madaris Pakistan13, one qualified from a local

Deeni Madrassa (Religious Teachings School not affiliated with Wafaq-ul-Madaris) and one was Hafiz-e-Quran14 also with an LLM degree in Sharia law. Three religious scholars had experience from 6-15 years and the remaining seven had between 16-25 year’s experience. All the participants were doing the job of religious scholars in different Madrassa’s in Peshawar.

6.2.3 Non-government Organization Workers

Among the NGO workers eight of the participants were between 25-40 years, one was aged 41-55 years while the remaining one was in the age group of 56-70 years. Eight of the participants were male while two were female. In terms of education, nine of the participants had MA (Masters) degrees while the remaining one was M.Phil. qualified.

13Wafaq ul Madaris Al-Arabia, Pakistan, its board was founded in 1959.It is the largest federation of Islamic Seminaries around the world. More than 10,000 Seminaries and about 8,000 Iqra Schools across the Islamic Republic of Pakistan are affiliated with the federation. It controls all the seminaries which are run by Ahle Sunnat Wal Jama'at(Deoband) School of thought. The head office of Wafaq ul Madaris is situated in Multan (Punjab) Pakistan. 14 Hafiz literally meaning "guardian" or "memorizer," depending on the context, is a term used by Muslims for someone who has completely memorized the Qur'an.

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In terms of professional interest, five had an interest in child protection, three in child education and the remaining two in advocacy. Four of the participants worked at managerial level, three were child protection officers and the remaining three were social mobilizers.

6.2.4 Child Psychologists

All the child psychologists were in the age group of 21-30 years. Eight were female while the remaining two were male. One participant was M.Phil. qualified, five had an

MSc (Masters) degree in Psychology along with a diploma in clinical psychology, while the remaining four had BS (H) degrees in psychology. Six of the participants had a professional interest in child protection, one in child rights, two in clinical psychology and the remaining one in psychotherapy. All the participants were in the category of 1-

10 years working experience in their profession.

6.2.5 Parents

Seven of the parents were aged between 26-40 years of age while the remaining three were aged 41-55 years. All the participants were male (due to cultural barriers the data was only collected from male). In terms of qualification, two of the participants were illiterate, one had an education up to primary level, six had a secondary school certificate, while the remaining parent was qualified to higher secondary school level.

Furthermore, in occupation four of the participants had their own land and were farming, two were labouring, two had their own business (shops) and the remaining one was a taxi driver.

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The following tables explain the participant’s attitude towards corporal punishment based on position, age and gender.

Table 6.1: Support and non-support of participants by position

Position Sample Supportive Non-Supportive

Teachers 10 06 04

Religious Scholars 10 05 05

NGO’s Workers 10 04 06

Child Psychologists 10 04 06

Parents 10 08 02

Total 50 27 23

Explanation

The above table clearly explains the support and non-support for corporal punishment based on the positions of the sample. Among teachers, six were found supportive of the practice of corporal punishment while four were against. Among religious scholars, five were supportive and five were against. Four participants were supportive of corporal punishment among non-government organization workers while six were against and four child psychologists were supportive while six were against. Finally, among the parents, eight were supportive towards corporal punishment while two were against its practice. Thus, teachers and parents were most likely to support corporal punishment,

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NGO workers and child psychologists were less likely to support it and religious scholars were equally divided.

Table 6.2: Age and attitude of participants towards corporal punishment

Ages Sample Supportive Non-supportive

21-30 16 8 8

31-40 16 8 8

41-50 8 5 3

51-60 10 6 4

Total 50 27 23

Explanation

The above table explains the attitude of the respondents towards corporal punishment by age group. Half of 21-30 year olds and half of 31-40 year olds were supportive to its practice while half were against. In the age group of 41-50 years, out of the eight sampled five were supportive towards its practice while three were against and for those aged 51-60 years six out of the ten were supportive to its practice while four were against. This indicates that the older the respondent the more likely they are to be supportive but that overall people were more likely to support the practice than not to support it.

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Table 6.3: Gender and attitudes of participants towards corporal punishment

Gender Sample Supportive Non-Supportive

Female 10 5 5

Male 40 22 18

Total 50 27 23

Explanation

The above table explains attitude towards corporal punishment on the basis of gender.

Out of ten females sampled five were supportive and five were against. Among the male sample of 40 respondents, 22 were found supportive to its practice while 18 were against the practice of corporal punishment. These gender differences are too small to draw definitive conclusions but reveal that corporal punishment is both supported and not supported by men and women.

6.3 Attitude and Beliefs of Corporal punishment: Support vs Non-support

Corporal punishment is a culturally accepted and religiously supported phenomenon in

Pakistan, and this world view was reflected in participant responses. Many were found in one way or the other to be sympathetic to its practice. However, some were also against it practice due to its negative consequences and inhuman nature of punishment.

In this regard, a teacher (T-02) stated;

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[In my view corporal punishment is the use of physical power to punish or beat

a child for wrong-doings and as far as my opinion is concerned I personally

support its practice up to some extent as we have to control our children not to

do anything which is immoral or unethical and our religion (Islam) also allow

us to practice corporal punishment in that context]

The teacher was quite clear about the definition of corporal punishment and he was also supportive of its practice due to the fear that if he did not punish the children he would not have control over them. He linked its practice with the enforcement of the cultural concepts of ‘morality’ and ‘ethics’ and also power and thus a means to exercise dominancy over children. In this context another teacher (T-04) was of a similar opinion but he presented this arguments in a different way stating that;

[Actually, corporal punishment is to punish or beat a child for wrong-doings in

order to modify or correct the behaviour of the child and personally I do not

support its practice but we are unable to work without it as our schools are so

overcrowded and the children are so aggressive and naughty that we do not have

any other option as there is a saying in Pashto15 ‘chi charta dabb wi alta adab

wi16’ and indeed it will be really hard for us to work without it]

15 Pashto sometimes spelled Pukhto, is the language of the . Speakers of the language are called Pashtuns or Pakhtuns and sometimes Afghans or Pathans. 16 This means if there is punishment there will be discipline.

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The teacher provides a logic for its practice at the same time as opposing it. Its practice is necessary for running schools and no other option is available or even part of this teacher’s world view other than corporal punishment. He supported his argument by a

Pashto proverb and which is indeed often used in relation to both children and women in . In continuation of this world view, support is also provided by a religious scholar (RS-01) who correlates its practice with the teaching of Islam;

[In my view it is to beat a child physically in order to correct the misbehaviour

of the child. Well frankly speaking I personally support its mild practice for

behaviour correction and discipline as there is a concept of reward and

punishment in our religion as well]

This religious scholar support its practice up to mild level but in Pakistan there is no agreed definition of the term or condition ‘mild’. Semiotically, he links it with the concept of punishment in Islam and at the same time connects it to the reward philosophy of the religion. Others including this participant from a non-government organization (NGO-04) used this language;

[In terms of definition it is the use of physical force in order to correct the

misbehaviour and wrong-doings of the child. Well personally speaking not on

organizational basis I agree to its practice up to some extent I mean mild for

child grooming and discipline as our religion (Islam) also supports its practice

and our culture also approves its practice as well and indeed it’s an appropriate

method as well in our culture context as we have a more coercive culture]

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Thus, even those who might be expected to take an alternative world view due to their profession and organisational values and work on the rights of children also support corporal punishment in a mild way for disciplining and grooming the child. This practitioner is not using a religious worldview as instruction to adhere to the practice.

Rather he supports the practice on a personal level and refers to religion and culture as endorsement or support. Similar to the non-government organization worker a child psychologist (CP-07), who was female, also supports the practice;

[From my point of view, it is the use of physical power to beat or punish a child

for his/her misbehaviour. Personally, I support its practice up to a mild level in

extreme cases for behaviour correction and academic achievements but only if

all other measures for this purpose fail to do so]

The child psychologist was also supportive of its mild practice in extreme cases but only if other measures fail to achieve the goals of behaviour correction and academic achievement. Parental support for corporal punishment is quite obvious in Pakistani context and is clearly part of the worldview of this participant (P-04);

[Well I think it is to beat a child for the misbehaviour. Well honestly speaking

personally I support its practice but if its aim is the benefit of the child and as

teachers are spiritual parents so they are in good position to make proper

decisions for the child character building and achieving the academic goals]

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The participant has linked the teacher with the spiritual parents and it is a quite a clear concept in Pakistan’s society that teachers are spiritual parents. This means they are given authority by the parents to make decisions about their children in schools and they can even use corporal punishment for the betterment of the child. In contradiction to its support some participants were also against the practice of corporal punishment as a teacher (T-01) stated;

[It is the use of physical force to beat or punish a child for the misbehaviour

while in school context for academic purposes. Well honestly speaking, the

teachers use it quite often and it also beneficial for short term compliance and

maintaining the class discipline but personally I am totally against its practice

as it is not beneficial in the long run as it develops different types of problems

in later life]

This teacher’s worldview reflects and different set of criteria to those who support the practice. A similar definition is provided and benefits for short-term compliance are acknowledged. There is no reference here to culture and religion, rather the concepts of benefit to the child are introduced and the practice judged ‘not beneficial in the long run’. This is the first mention of time and evidence of a sense that a child’s future may be affected. In this context a religious scholar (RS-06) stated;

[It is actually to beat a child for the wrong-doings. Honestly. I personally do not

support its practice I believe in ‘innamat-o-tanbihat’ (advice and rewards) for

child direction and behaviour modification. Indeed, our people do not

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understand the real meaning of Ayat17 and Hadith and always misinterpret it

and actually corporal punishment is the cause of these misinterpretations]

The religious scholar presented his interpretation of the teachings of Islam for child development and stated that its practice is in reality the outcome of a misinterpretation of religious teachings as like so many other issues. In a similar way another religious scholar (RS-09) stated;

[I do not support its practice as it is in reality a deviation from the real meaning

of Islamic teachings as Islam teaches us to be kind, loving and affectionate to

children. Corporal punishment is used for the behaviour modification of

children but Hazrat Ali18 (RA) once stated that it’s a really hard task to bring

change in someone’s habit/behaviour]

The religious scholar highlighted an alternative worldview in Islamic teachings of kindness, love and affection in dealing with the children. He considered corporal punishment to be a deviation from the real meaning of the Islamic philosophies. In this context a non-government organization worker (NGO-09) stated;

17 Ayat means "evidence" "sign" or "Miracle". In the context of Islam's principal scripture, the Quran, ayat is used to mean "verse", i.e. each statement or paragraph marked by a number. 18 Hazrat Ali (RA) was the cousin and son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). He ruled as the fourth caliph from 656 to 661, and was first Imam of Shia Islam from 632 to 661.

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[In my view it is to use of physical power to beat a child for the ill behaviour.

Honestly, I am totally against its practice as it causes severe mental and physical

issues to the children both in short and long run]

Drawing on a worldview that takes account of time and futures this non-government organization worker was aware of the negative impacts of its practice on children both in the short and long run. Although parents are usually supportive one parent (P-01) was against its practice because he considered it as a wrong method for education purposes;

[It is to beat a child for misbehaviour and academic purposes. Personally, I do

not support its practice as education cannot be learned through the use of

physical force or violence in my view this type of education is useless]

This presents an alternative worldview that prioritises education and learning. Thus, with respect to support and non-support for corporal punishment different opinions were given based on alternative worldviews of childhood; this prioritises the developmental aspect that seeks to promote a mentally and healthy, secure adulthood

(non-support) or a fearful and momentarily obedient one (support) that encourages transgression out of sight of authority. The semiotics of corporal punishment provide a grammar that authorises or is against it. Almost all provide a definition that includes

‘physical power’, ‘beating’ with reference to a child’s ‘bad behaviour’, ‘aggression’,

‘naughtiness’, ‘wrong doings’. Proponents use terms such as; control, correction, modification, discipline, reward and punishment. Its use is authorised using terms such

135 as; morality, ethics, religion, culture and ‘mildness’. Opponents refer to corporal punishment as ‘violence’ and talk in terms of ‘short-term’ and ‘long-term’, ‘mental’ and ‘physical’ effects and impacts on ‘education’ and ‘learning’. They also authorise their position using religion and a worldview that prioritises kindness and love. Thus, the teachings of Islam can be drawn on to support very contrasting worldviews which suggests that they are not the cause of corporal punishment, which is deeply embedded at the micro, mezzo and macro-system level, but are a social resource used by citizens in a day to day context to justify it, depending on their cultural and social experience.

6.4 Nature and Extent of Corporal Punishment in Schools

The nature and extent of corporal punishment in schools varies from school to school and individual to individual. Explaining his experience of types of corporal punishment in use, a teacher (T-01) stated;

[Well frankly speaking I do not practice corporal punishment but the other

teachers use hands and sticks for punishment. They usually punish children by

hands in the form of slapping on the face but they also do use a stick with which

they hit/beat children on the buttocks and hands but on rare occasions if the

offence is extremely severe in nature. I do not have any idea about other schools

in how much they practice in routine but in our school slapping is a common

punishment while beating with a stick is rare]

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The teacher clearly connects hands with slapping which is described as routine, while beating is associated with the use of sticks. This semiotic connection between the implement (hand, stick) and the action (slapping, beating), one routine and the other described as rare begins to denote different qualities of acceptibility. If an action is routine, an every day part of the meso-system, it must be acceptable within that environment. Rarity describes an action which is known about and acceptable under certain circumstances, which are not routine. However, in my field notes I recorded that

I observed many sticks available in the school for punishment purposes (Field notes

August 15, 2017). In this context another teacher (T-10) gave a clear and explicit description;

[To be very honest I must say almost all forms are still practiced just like the

old days including using of the stick, shoe and sometimes electric wires on all

parts of the body such as hands and buttocks, slapping, grabbing, pulling the

hair and twisting ears and even arms sometime]

The teacher also said that its practice is moderate nowadays and mainly depends on the nature of the offense and the nature of the teacher student relationship. This response more precisely highlights the nature of corporal punishment in schools including a wide range of actions, implements and body parts. He linked its practice with the nature of relationships between the student and the teacher which implies that better relations will lead to the lesser practice of corporal punishment. In continuation of this theme a religious scholar (RS-07) made a similar semiotic connection between corporal punishment and the nature of the teacher student relationship;

137

[Well to be honest I am not clear about the extent of its practice (of corporal

punishment) but nowadays teachers take personal works and benefits from the

children in schools as I saw so many students in our area taking Dahi (curd),

Doodh (milk) and Makkan (yogurt) for the teachers]

This is very common phenomenon in rural areas of Pakistan as people living in these areas are mostly associated with farming and have cows, buffalos etc. at home so teachers ask the students to bring dairy products for them. With respect to the nature and extent of corporal punishment a non-government organization worker (NGO-01) stated;

[Well in my view beating with a stick on buttocks and hands, slapping and

sometimes hitting the head of a child with the desk are some of the common

types of corporal punishment practiced in schools. Well its practice is nowadays

at a moderate level but it still depends on the location of the area and the

educational and awareness level of the community]

It is not clear what is meant by a ‘moderate’ level but this term fits in the lexicon of size or quality along with ‘mild’ and ‘severe’ as already mentioned. Corporal punishment is therefore distinguished by stakeholders along these qualifying line, although none define where the border between mild, moderate and severe might lie.

This response also makes a distinction on the basis of locality; it is claimed that its practice is still a common phenomenon in Pakistan but its extent mainly depends on the

138 area e.g. in rural areas its practice is more frequent as compared to urban areas. In continuation to these views another participant (NGO-10) stated;

[In my knowledge teachers beat the student with anything which is available at

first hand to the teacher such as a stick, books, belt, shoes, chairs etc and after

the punishment the teacher asks the student ‘chi usha darta dard19’ which is

shameful and disgusting. As far as the extent is concerned, its practice is severe

in rural areas as compared to the urban areas]

This response offers a collective device for the implements previously mentioned by others and adds more items into the collection which is described as anything available.

Two criteria are now indicated; firstly, the earlier distinctions of severity which reference implement (hand/slap, stick/beat) appear not to apply here (anything is used on an arbitrary basis) with the aim of making the child feel pain. Secondly, the distinction between urban and rural areas is reinforced. In this context among the parents a participant (P-05) elaborated;

[Well as per my knowledge its practice is still at a maximum level besides

slapping and beating teachers also hit the child belly with the ballpoint. Usually

the class monitor20 writes the name of a student on the blackboard due to

19 It means ‘have you felt the pain?’. 20 Class monitor is among the students and he/she has responsibility for control of the class in the teacher’s absence.

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personal conflicts and tells the teacher that he is misbehaving and the teacher

punishes him without asking or inquiring]

This response references a common routine in schools where the class monitor has responsibility for students if the teacher leaves the room or is otherwise engaged. Here is the first clear indication of the internalisation of the practice of corporal punishment by children themselves; they identify a student they claim is misbehaving, knowing that the teacher will apply corporal punishment. The monitor could just as easily ignore misbehaviour or decide not to identify a student, yet they do so and in this way reinforce the practice for their own and future generations. This perpetration of the culture of acceptance of corporal punishment is noted by others when asked ‘what leads to the practice’?

6.5 What leads to the practice of Corporal Punishment in Schools?

The practice of corporal punishment in schools is associated with numerous factors in

Pakistan. These factors may be either micro, mezzo or macro but it contributes to its practice in one way or another. In this context a teacher (T-01) stated;

[Actually, its practice is due to the cultural acceptability of the phenomenon in

our society, neither the parents nor the teacher consider it as a harmful method

for child behaviour modification and discipline, which may be due to their

personal experience of it in childhood]

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The teacher semiotically links its practice with cultural acceptance at the macro level.

It is the culture that supports its practice for children (and indeed women see, for example, the work of Ali and Gavino) as an appropriate and acceptable method for the purpose of discipline and behaviour correction, which is not considered harmful. This is often justified, as it is here, by personal childhood experience; they have also been punished in childhood by their elders and this makes them more obedient. In addition to this another teacher (T-03) stated;

[In my knowledge poor academic performance and child discipline are the

factors for which we usually practice corporal punishment. It has been used as

a last resort for achieving academic goals and disciplining children if other

methods such as advice and guidance fail to achieve these goals]

The association between the corporal punishment and disciplining the child and achieving the academic goals has been highlighted. In this response a further semiotic device is drawn on which is that of giving an example (‘such as’). This example offers

‘advice and guidance’ as an alternative for achieving these goals but in reality, the giving of advice and guidance is an integral element of everyday teaching; it is the everyday task at hand and as such is not a viable alternative. The teacher refers to ‘other methods’ but does not go into detail which suggests that he perceives ‘advice and guidance’ to be the easiest to recall. This might suggest that corporal punishment is therefore the defacto alternative if a child is not responding to ‘advice and guidance’ i.e. the school curriculum, which therefore works to further reinforce its acceptance as an everyday practice. Offering support for this interpretation teacher (T-07) said;

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[Well its practice is due to the unawareness and illiteracy of the society as they

are not aware of the child rights and the negative consequences of corporal

punishment, the family background also plays a key role in boosting its practice

as the family consider it legitimate and beneficial for the child. Besides this

some teachers are also habitually practicing it in order to hide their

incompetency]

Pakistan is a developing country where the literacy level is not so high and people mostly lack awareness of child rights. In addition, not all teachers are adequately qualified, particularly in the field of classroom management and may not be competent to deal with child related issues and the school environment. While a teacher (T-10) considered his own frustration responsible for its practice as he stated;

[To be very honest the teacher’s own frustration plays a vital role and besides

this overcrowded classes, inefficient teachers, educational and socio-economic

status of the teachers are some other factors responsible for its practice]

Teachers represent a frustrated segment of our society due to low salaries, inappropriate job scales and not having enough powers, as compared to the administrative posts. In addition, many schools are overcrowded and teachers are unable to deal with the huge number of children in their classes, which leads them to practice corporal punishment to maintain discipline.

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Some of the participants considered the practice as the outcome of Islamic teaching.

For example, this teacher (T-08) stated;

[Usually people practice it as our religion Islam also supports the practice of

corporal punishment and some of the teachers are also qualified from

Madrassa’s21 so they practice it]

In our schools some of the teachers are also qualified from the Madrassa and they teach the subjects of Islamic studies and Religious studies in the school and sometimes they also practice corporal punishment that’s why the teacher linked it with religious teachings. However, a religious scholar (RS-01) considered corporal punishment of children as a deviation from the Islamic teachings;

[In my opinion its practice is a deviation from the Islamic teachings as Islam

teaches about mercy and kindness with children which we do not follow in this

case. On the other hand Islam also places emphasise on the control of anger

which teachers also ignore while practicing corporal punishment and the

practice of corporal punishment is mainly due to the personal anger of the

teacher]

It’s a fact that Pakistan is an Islamic country but a small proportion of people can understand the real meaning of the Islamic teachings. As a consequence, the teachings

21 Madrassa is an Islamic religious school.

143 are interpreted through a cultural and personal lens, which can lead to misinterpretation that reinforces the acceptability of, and practice of, corporal punishment. The response from another religious scholar (RS-07) reinforces that secular reasons are the most important cause;

[Well in my opinion teachers usually practice it to have their own control in the

class, to keep the children in a state of fear and suppression and to hide their

incompetency. The teacher’s own frustration and attitude is responsible for its

practice. In our country most of the teachers are incompetent for dealing with

child related issues and to hide their incompetency they have developed a

violent attitude to have control over the classroom. Power shortages or

electricity load shedding are another cause of its practice as neither the teacher

nor the student sleep properly and are not relaxed which leads to the practice of

corporal punishment. In addition, some other factors also play a key role

including overcrowded classes, student family background and the economic

issues of the teachers]

It’s a harsh reality of Pakistan’s society that to retain power and dominancy over the class teachers practice corporal punishment either to hide their incompetency or to make the student afraid of him/her, which leads them to develop a violent or aggressive attitude towards the children. Parents are similarly aware of these issues, for example, parent (P-09) stated;

144

[Well frankly speaking teachers interest in child education, child parental

interest, cultural and religious factors, overcrowded class, workload on teachers

and the child personal behaviour responsible for its practice]

A non-government organization worker (NGO-09) again reinforced these causes but highlighted the preparation of teachers as a major factor which he believed responsible;

[To be very honest teachers are by chance in this profession and that they are

not giving priority to their job instead they are doing it as a part time job and

their main work is something else like maybe they are doing their own

businesses besides this they also do not applying the teaching techniques which

they learnt during their teaching courses as they did not understand its concept

and usually passed it by cheating. Also, unawareness about child rights,

teacher’s lack of awareness about alternative methods and overcrowded schools

are some of the other factors responsible]

In addition to reinforcing many of the alleged causes identified by others, this response also alleges that even where qualified teachers may have obtained their qualification through methods that will not equip them to adequately manage the school environment. A child psychologist (CP-04) added a further potential cause, stating;

[In my view poverty, overcrowded classes, expectations of the teacher from the

student, inefficiency of teachers and lack of understanding of child behaviour,

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lack of family interest in child education, untrained and frustrated teachers, the

teachers personal experience of corporal punishment in the past, lack of

monitoring from the government and no proper legislation on the issue leads to

its practice]

The legislative issue and no monitoring at school level for the cases of corporal punishment is here identified as a further factor that leads to the practice of corporal punishment in schools.

In summary, for respondents, the causes of corporal punishment operate at multiple levels in the ecological system. At the micro-level the teacher’s anger and frustration, the implement to hand in that moment and the teacher’s own personal experience, beliefs and upbringing (their sociocultural identities and relationships) are critical criteria. At the mezzo level, the school environment, overcrowding, power shortages, the quality of teacher training and the parent’s and school community attitudes and beliefs that reinforce corporal punishment play an important role. At the macro-level, societal and cultural mores, lack of enforceable legislation, poverty and the socio- economic status of teachers and children are identified as contributory factors. The phenomenon cannot be associated with a single factor but is the outcome of numerous factors that are dynamically and constantly interrelated, which reinforce each other and in one way or another either support or boost its practice in the schools of Pakistan.

146

6.6 Stakeholder’s Perceptions of School Discipline

A variety of responses were received in relation to school discipline including; the methods used for maintaining school discipline, school governance mechanisms such as Parent-Teacher Councils (PTC). The practice of corporal punishment and redressal mechanisms for it was integral to understandings of discipline. For example, teacher

(T-01) stated;

[Well by discipline we mean to run the school as per government rules and

guidelines and to keep “Nazm-o-zabt” (Disposal). We guide students in the

Morning Assembly for maintaining discipline and students are also given

instructions on discipline by the PTI (Physical Teaching Instructor) and if the

students still do not keep to the discipline than we use mild corporal punishment

but that is very occasional. Well I personally believe if the corporal punishment

is abolished then it will be having negative impacts on the school discipline and

child interest in schools will be reduced. Discipline will be discussed with the

parents in PTC meetings as well. We do not use any alternative methods for

school discipline due to workload. PTC meetings are held on a monthly basis

but they usually discuss school infrastructure and issues related to corporal

punishment are never discussed in these meetings. The government do not have

any redressal mechanism for dealing with the complaints of corporal

punishment though some non-government organizations are working in this

field]

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Morning assembly is carried out in schools on a daily basis where the students recite a few verses from the Holy Quran and the national anthem of Pakistan is sung. Student’s participation is mandatory for this. During assembly the head teacher guides the students with the aim of maintaining discipline in classes. In addition, there are regular classes of physical training where the teacher also reinforces school discipline but if these measures fail then the teacher will practice corporal punishment. Its practice is considered as fundamental for maintaining school discipline and teachers believe that if it is abolished then it will be very hard for them to maintain discipline in the school.

The fact that no measure is available from the government for the abolishment of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan is offered as relevant to its practice. With respect to the abolishment of corporal punishment another teacher (T-02) stated;

[Well I believe if corporal punishment is abolished from schools than the school

system will collapse to a great extent as than we will only use advice and

guidance for maintaining discipline, which will make it a hard task to achieve

discipline as there is a saying in a Pashto “da da dabb musalmanan di22”(Pashto

proverb). We do not have any complaint mechanism for dealing with the issue

of corporal punishment though the District Education Officer has issued letters

to all the schools for abolishing the practice of corporal punishment but that is

only a paper work, previously a non-government organization had also worked

in this regard]

22 Its means our people can only be controlled by force and punishment.

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The National Assembly of Pakistan passed the Prohibition of Corporal Punishment bill in 2014 but it was not approved by the Senate of Pakistan in 2017 as it is in contradiction to section 89 of the Pakistan Penal Code. During those 3 years the District Education

Officer issued letters to the school administration for the abolishment of corporal punishment but as this bill does not have any legal status these letters just remain as

‘paper work’ and teachers do not have to implement it. In this context another participant (T-04) has given a quite different logic as he stated;

[Well if the human rights representatives stay with us in our school for a longer

time than they will also support corporal punishment as our children do not

understand any-other language except punishment. If corporal punishment is

completely abolished than it will be very hard for teacher to maintain discipline

as we have once tried some alternative methods like advice and guidance for

behaviour modification and discipline but that experiment was not successful]

It’s a harsh reality in Pakistan’s society that corporal punishment is considered as the main tool for maintaining school discipline. This response emphasises that the only alternatives considered as ‘advice and guidance’, which as noted above are not real alternatives. These terms describe a fundamental aspect of education which is integral to the school day. But respondents rarely offered any viable alternatives such as peer mentoring, time out, reward systems and other methods of behaviour modification. In continuation to this another teacher (T-05) stated;

149

[To be very honest if a teacher understands and is clear about his or her subject

than there will be no need of corporal punishment as usually the teachers

practice it to hide their incompetency. He also stated that in our PTC’s meetings

we never discussed the issue of corporal punishment but nowadays teachers are

becoming afraid of social media, that if they punish a child severely than it will

be highlighted by the local people on social media, and well if such a thing

happened than I personally believe the parent’s will complain to the Head

teacher about this and he will resolve the issue by informal means]

Every teacher in school has to teach a specific subject and if he/she is able to convey the subject properly to the students then they will enjoy learning which, according to this teacher, reduces the chance of corporal punishment. Although currently a rare occurrence, this teacher introduces the notion of social media as a potential deterrent.

Due to the advancement in technology almost every third person in our society uses social media particularly Facebook23 so that teachers are beginning to become concerned that their actions may be more widely shared and judged. With respect to child misbehaviour and the mechanism for handling it a teacher (T-06) stated;

[Well if a child misbehaves than we advise and guide him. If he still continues

then we call his parents, particularly the father, and warn the child but if he still

misbehave then we practice corporal punishment]

23 Pakistan had 30 million internet users (see Daily The Express Tribune June 24, 2013) and ranked 5th in Asia in mobile phone users (see Daily Dawn, July 27, 2011).

150

This teacher again reinforces the fundamental position of corporal punishment in the disciplinary regime. Similarly, with regard to maintaining school discipline and classroom management a religious scholar (RS-02) stated;

[Well its (corporal punishment’s) practice is sometimes beneficial for

maintaining discipline as our school are overcrowded and work loaded and the

teachers are also not trained on any other alternative method for controlling the

class and it is also beneficial for academic achievements but in very rare cases]

The following religious scholar (RS-08) explains this fundamental acceptance of corporal punishment as a myth;

[Well I believe that in reality it is only a misconception that a child behaviour

can be corrected by corporal punishment it can only be modified by love,

affection and kindness]

The religious scholar linked an authentic reading of Islamic teachings with the behaviour modification of the child and asserted that behaviour can only be corrected with affection, love and kindness. However, this interpretation and its ensuing practice was not the norm in my interviews. Even NGO workers accept the practice as the following confirms (NGO-06);

151

[In my view a child’s behaviour cannot be corrected by the practice of corporal

punishment but on the other hand it is sometimes beneficial for the academic

goals as our children do not take interest in education if they are not punished]

This appears to be a common perception about corporal punishment, that it is beneficial for achieving academic goals, and this situation allows the teachers to practice it freely.

In contrast, another NGO respondent (NGO-09) stated;

[Well to be very honest its practice is not beneficial neither for behaviour

correction and discipline nor for academic goals, it makes the children habitual

and they lose their zeal for learning]

Adding further endorsement of the practice of corporal punishment and its linkage with discipline and academic performance a psychologist (CP-01) stated;

[That it is sometimes beneficial for short term compliance and discipline but as

we know excess of everything is bad while on the academic performance it

depends on the situation and nature of the punishment. Our teachers cannot

maintain the school discipline without the practice of corporal punishment]

Almost all that participants used the semiotics of ‘rules’, ‘guidance’, ‘discipline’,

‘misbehaviour’ and ‘beneficial’ with respect to the practice of corporal punishment.

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They believed that if corporal punishment is ‘abolished’ than the school system will be

‘collapsed’ while the opponents of corporal punishment believed that the goals of school discipline and child behaviour modification can be achieved with promoting the culture of ‘love’, ‘affection’ and ‘kindness’. Thus, the majority of respondents hold a world view of corporal punishment as integral to discipline in schools. They primarily consider its practice beneficial for short term obedience and for achieving academic goals. This reveals where difficulties lie in enforcing the abolishment of its practice.

Teachers and some parents, religious scholars, NGO workers and child psychologist believe that it will not be possible to maintain school discipline without its practice.

6.7 Psycho-Social and Physiological Impacts on Children

In relation to the impacts of corporal punishment on children personality development, socialization and physical health a variety of responses were received. It is clear that there is an awareness of potential impacts. For example, teacher (T-01) stated;

[Well in my view corporal punishment spoils the creative thinking of the child

and it sometime leads to physical abuse as well. It develops anger, frustration,

fear, hesitation, lack of courage or boldness and shyness in the child. In later

life, it sometimes also creates criminal tendencies. It is one of the major cause

of school dropout and runaway cases from homes. Frankly speaking in terms of

academic performance, in some cases it is beneficial for the academic

achievements as our educational system is mainly theoretical and not practical

and sometimes when a teacher beats a child for academic purposes the said child

learns the topic for which he/she received the punishment without

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understanding its concept and they write it in the exam as well if it is in the

paper so automatically they get good grades]

Though this teacher has highlighted the physical and psychological impacts of corporal punishment the majority of respondents were not as aware of the psycho-social impacts of its practice. In this context another teacher (T-02) stated;

[In my view corporal punishment develops the feelings of hatred in children

towards school as there is a Pashto proverb ‘pa zoor kali na kege24’clearly

explains the phenomenon. Indeed, its practice plays both the positive and

negative role. It is mainly used to control the anti-social behaviour of a child

but in reality, its practice has negative impacts and in some cases, it increases

the occurrence of anti-social behaviours]

The allegation that corporal punishment can lead to feelings of hatred for school is a strong one. This links to other literature (see Chapter 2) that finds corporal punishment can have negative impacts on the motivational level of the child towards the school which leads to school drop out in the country. Here, the teacher links its practice with the potential to increase anti-social behaviour among the children. Some participants qualified their assessment of impacts, linking them to the nature and severity of the punishment, as one teacher (T-05) stated;

24 This means that you cannot win the hearts of others by force.

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[Frankly speaking the impacts of corporal punishment depends on the type and

extent of punishment, nature of offense and the relationships between the

teacher and the student]

From responses thus far, it is clear that the practice of corporal punishment is a deeply embedded cultural phenomenon in Pakistan. It is also a prevailing concept in our society that corporal punishment sometimes does not affect the child because he/she has committed an offence for which they need to be punished and the nature of the impact is also linked with the relationship between the child and the adults who practice it. For example, this teacher (T-08) considered it as a routine phenomenon in the lives of children in Pakistan;

[Actually, our children are habitual of corporal punishment they receive it in

more severe form in homes and Madrassa’s while the school corporal

punishment is very mild in that regard so it will not have any impact on them]

This comment is redolent of a commonly held world view in Pakistan, that corporal punishment does not having any impacts on the children as our children are habituated to it, as they receive it on a daily basis either in one way or another. By way of reinforcing this cultural embeddedness, another teacher (T-07) linked its practice with the return cycle in later life he stated;

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[Personally, I believe if a child did not receive any type of corporal punishment

than in adult life he/she would be kind, loving and affectionate while on the

other hand if he/she received it than they will return it to the world in any shape]

This response connects with the concept of promoting a culture of violence, which appears to be an understood phenomenon, although people continue to practice it knowing this. Again this is reinforced by its justification for the academic process, even where its practice could be described as severe physical abuse, as this teacher (T-10) states;

[Well, its practice sometimes causes disability in children but its mild usage is

sometimes beneficial for academic achievements]

It is challenging to understand how people can consider its practice as beneficial for academic purposes and at the same time are also aware of its negative impacts on children.

Although religious scholars were not as aware of impacts on children, indirectly they highlighted various impacts of corporal punishment on children. For example, participant (RS-01) linked its practice with having negative impacts on motivation but at the same time drew a line between its impacts and nature and extent of the punishment;

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[Well in my view corporal punishment creates lack of motivation in children

towards the school but it mainly depends on the nature and extent of the

punishment]

Most respondents linked its impacts with the nature and extent of the punishment but in reality, no one is aware of how ‘extent’ can be measured and what are the criteria for it. Religious scholars were clearly aware of negative socio-psychological impacts as

(RS-02) stated;

[In my opinion it develops fear, anxiety, depression and hatred among children.

This hatred may be towards the school, teacher or any adult in the community

whom is beating the child]

As with teachers, they were aware of positive and negative impacts, for example as one religious scholar (RS-05) stated;

[Well I believe that its practice is sometimes beneficial in short term for

discipline and academic achievements due to our educational system but in long

run it creates anger, frustration, violence, physical abuse and criminal

tendencies in the children]

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So, people are aware of the negative impacts of corporal punishment up to some level but they still consider it beneficial for maintaining discipline and achieving academic goals. These short term perceived positive impacts on the educational process at the mezzo level (the school environment) seem to outweigh longer term socio- psychological impact at the micro-level of the individual child. One religious scholar

(RS-07) presented a wholly negative picture of its impacts, however;

[Well in my view its practice causes lack of self-respect, self-confidence, loss

of discussion and debate power, negative impacts on school performance,

hatred towards the school and the teacher and spoils the creativity and thinking

power of the child]

Another religious scholar (RS-09) who had been eye witness to its practice clearly understood what he had seen as physical abuse;

[Well its practice leads to physical abuse and sometimes causes permanent

disability. I saw a teacher who broke the head of our neighbour child by severely

hitting his head with the wall]

Non-government organization workers were aware of the impacts of corporal punishment on children as they were working in the field of child protection. Several identified impacts at the micro and mezzo level for the child and the educational

158 process. One participant (NGO-03) provided a detailed picture of its impacts on children according to her;

[Well honestly speaking the practice of corporal punishment causes weak

mental health, stubborn, aggression, lack of motivation, child isolation due to

humiliation which leads to anti-social personality disorder, lack of confidence,

effect the cognitive process which leads to poor academic performance,

hampered thinking, make the child rigid, hatred towards the teacher or any

adult, use of bad language, hesitation, shyness, jealousy, suicide thoughts and

dropouts from schools]

Similar views were also presented by participant (NGO-09);

[Well the practice of corporal punishment have numerous impacts on the

physical health, mental health and social life of the child, in physical health on

child it has both the internal and external impacts which sometimes causes

severe medical problems, second it had impacts on the mental health of the child

its practice develop humiliation, fear, anxiety, depression, spoils thinking and

creativity, anger and frustration while thirdly the child socially become

isolated, facing the adjustment problems, develop the revenge feelings and

return cycle and also causes school dropouts which further leads to child labour

and street children]

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This participant references physical, psychological and sociological impacts. In terms of psychological impacts he draws a link between its practice and various negative mental processes and finally in terms of sociological impacts he concluded that it promotes the culture of violence (revenge feelings and return cycle) school drop out which connects to further social problems (child labour and street children). Several respondents referred to similar impacts (NGO-01);

[In my opinion its practice causes so many issues like it develops mental stress,

the student cannot express him/herself properly and always remains in a state of

suppression which leads to poor academic performance. It also develops hatred

towards the school and the teacher which on the other hand causes school

dropout. In my opinion its spoils the personality in the long run and causes some

serious mental problems as a child killed his father due to severe corporal

punishment but that was not in Peshawar but another District of Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa province]

For this NGO worker, corporal punishment also leads to negative effects at the micro and mezzo levels; impacts on the mental health of the child lead to suppression and hatred towards the school which ultimately causes school drop outs as children are unable to express their feelings and opinions to the elders. These consequences are potentially severe, resulting in murder in this example. Reinforcing this view, another participant (NGO-02) stated;

160

[In my view its practice makes the child socially isolated, a child who is unable

to fully express him/herself and spoils the child’s thinking and creativity power.

It not only causes severe dropouts from government schools but it has been also

observed that now students are shifting from government to private schools due

to its practice. It is not necessary that we may use corporal punishment for

behaviour modification we can achieve this goal by giving the child proper

concentration, responsibility and appreciation]

Corporal punishment makes a child socially isolated as the child’s classmates start making fun of them due to punishment. It’s also observed that now people are shifting their children from government to private schools in pursuit of a more positive educational environment and to be protected from corporal punishment. This starts to indicate impacts at the mezzo and macro levels as the very organisation of the educational system in Pakistan becomes altered by the practice.

Child psychologists were also included in order to have a detailed picture of their perceptions of psychological impacts. These mirrored the responses of others (CP-01);

[Well as per my knowledge its practice has negative impacts on the emotion of

the child, it develops fear, low self-esteem and lack of confidence. Honestly

speaking an emotionally disturbed child shows poor academic performance

which further leads to drop outs from schools or running away from homes. It

develops hatred towards the teacher and the school and creates a situation of

mistrust. It also spoils the personality development of the child and leads to

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industry vs inferiority25 personality. Besides this corporal punishment also

develops conduct disorder personalities26 and develops criminal tendencies in

later life]

Corporal punishment is frequently associated with school dropout but less emphasis is generally given to what a child bears before and after leaving school in terms of psychological impacts. The child psychologist gives a detailed description of the micro level factors which can cause school dropout. A second child psychologist reinforces this from their own personal experience (CP-02) stated;

[In my view its practice develops aggression, negative impacts on cognitive

development, lack of thinking, creativity and expression, lack of decision

making power, an inability to sustain strong social relationships and creates

power dynamics in the society. Well in reality the teacher loses respect by

practicing it, my own cousin left the school due to its practice]

Similarly, another participant (CP-04) stated;

25 Industry versus inferiority is the fourth stage of Erik Erikson's theory of psychosocial development. The stage occurs during childhood between the ages of approximately six and eleven. If the child cannot develop the specific skill they feel society is demanding then they may develop a sense of inferiority. 26 Conduct disorder, to be diagnosed, must last 6 months or longer. Most children or adolescents with conduct disorder grow out of this disorder, but if this behavior persists past age 18 and intensifies, the diagnosis is changed to antisocial personality disorder.

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[In my view it develops low self-esteem which spoils the socialization as the

child lost attention and concentration. It also spoils the self-efficacy and a child

become dependent personality27. Besides this its practice makes the child

barefaced]

Some child psychologists linked its practice into micro, mezzo and macro levels through the social-learning process (CP-06);

[In reality its practice causes poor academic achievements, rigidness and anti-

social instincts besides this they also start believing that it’s a legitimate way

for achieving your goals and start using violence in later life]

Corporal punishment is here directly linked to promoting a culture of violence as the child starts learning that’s it’s a proper and legitimate way for achieving their goals and this return cycle it becomes responsible for maintaining the practice in Pakistan. In continuation to this another psychologist (CP-07) stated;

[Well in my view its practice sometimes causes physical abuse, the child starts

believing in violence and using abusive language which promotes and transfers

the culture of violence from one generation to another. It spoils our eight types

of emotions28 by either increasing or decreasing them. It sometime creates

27 Dependent personality disorder (DPD), formerly known as asthenic personality disorder, is a personality disorder that is characterized by a pervasive psychological dependence on other people. 28 Eight types of emotions are; fear, anger, sadness, joy, disgust, surprise, trust and anticipation.

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phobias, sleep problems, night terrors, eating problems and somatic

symptoms29, frustration and memory loss problems]

Besides promoting the culture of violence corporal punishment can also make the child emotionally disturbed having impacts on the child mental status and develops phobias which can have serious negative impacts on the child’s personality development. There is little acknowledgement of this in the literature or research in Pakistan.

Parents were almost unaware of the psychological impacts as a participant (P-01) stated;

[Well in my view its impacts depend on the nature of the child, if the child is

aggressive than it will be having mild impacts but of the child is sensitive than

it will be having severe impacts. My nephew’s son left the school due to its

practice as he has been severely punished by the teacher as he did not complete

his homework]

The parents only linked its practice with school drop outs in our society because they are unaware of the other impacts of its practice on children. In this context another participant (P-03) stated;

29 Somatic symptom disorder (SSD) occurs when a person feels extreme anxiety about physical symptoms such as pain or fatigue. The person has intense thoughts, feelings, and behaviours related to the symptoms that interfere with daily life. A person with SSD is not faking his or her symptoms.

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[I believe that its practice may not be having any negative impacts if it is

practiced within the limits. It is also beneficial for academic performance

besides this it also develops fear in children which makes the children moral

and they will not do anything which is against the society]

It is clear that parents, as do teachers, consider its practice beneficial for academic purposes. In this case the parent also positively reframed the concept of fear that religious scholars, NGO workers and child psychologists noted as negative. They believe that its practice will develop fear in the children, which will make the child more obedient, respectful and morally strong so he/she may not do anything which is against the country’s moral values.

Some parents were aware of negative consequences, as a participant (P-04) stated;

[In my view it develops hatred towards the school and the teachers which also

leads to fear and depression which alternatively had negative impacts on the

child’s academic performance. I saw a child who is not coming to school due

to corporal punishment and his parents bringing him by force]

Although this parent has highlights some psychological issues he links this to the impact on the academic process rather than focusing on the longer term impacts for the child.

Opponents of corporal punishment used semiotics of ‘physical abuse’, ‘creativity’,

‘anger’, ‘fear’, ‘frustration’, ‘hesitation’, ‘lacking courage’, ‘shyness’, ‘criminal

165 tendencies’, ‘hatred’, ‘anti-social behaviour’, ‘negative motivation’, ‘violence’, ‘self- confidence’, ‘self-respect’, ‘mental health’ ‘cognitive development’ ‘hampered thinking’, ‘poor academic performance’, ‘drop out’ and ‘jealousy’ to describe negative impacts of corporal punishment on children. The proponents consider its practice beneficial for ‘discipline’, ‘obedience’, ‘respect’ and ‘academic achievements’. The world view of the participants considers corporal punishment harmful for the physical and mental health of the children while the alternative world view consider it beneficial for maintaining school discipline and achieving the academic goals.

6.8 Parental Position on Corporal Punishment

Parental support for corporal punishment in our society is strong as parent’s consider it necessary for child obedience, discipline and academic purposes. Every school has a parent-teacher council (PTC) to discuss the children and school related issues, in this context a parent (P-01) stated;

[Well I believe that the teacher will only use corporal punishment for the

betterment of the child. Personally, I did not attend any PTC meeting and to be

very honest I don’t know about any complaint centre related to corporal

punishment]

It’s a harsh reality in Pakistan’s society that people consider corporal punishment beneficial for the child. In continuation to this another participant (P-02) stated;

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[Well I think its practice is beneficial for academic purposes. I have attended

the PTC meeting twice but we did not discuss the issue of corporal punishment

in any meeting. Personally, I do not have any idea about the complaint

mechanism]

The practice of corporal punishment is here again endorsed as beneficial for academic purposes. This clearly demonstrates an acceptance of it in the day to day running of the school, so much so that it is not discussed in the PTC, which mainly focuses on school infrastructure and not child behaviour related issues as the following parent attests (P-

03);

[Well I personally use corporal punishment at home but very rare and I think it

is beneficial if within the limits. My son complained to me that my teacher beat

me very severely in school today so I advised my son to behave properly and

do your school work on time. I occasionally attend the PTC meeting but the

issue of corporal punishment in never discussed in that, they only discuss the

school infrastructure and the academic performance of the children]

Parental support enables teachers to practice corporal punishment in schools freely as parents generally consider it beneficial for achieving the academic goals. In this example, when the parent received a complaint from his child regarding school corporal punishment he makes the child responsible for its practice; this is not unusual.

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6.9 Islamic Perspective on Practicing Corporal Punishment

Pakistan is an Islamic country where the Islamic teachings are followed. Islam is a religion of peace, mercy and kindness particularly dealing with the children but, as I have outlined above and in previous chapters, it has also supported corporal punishment for the purposes of child discipline and character building. In order to have an in-depth understanding of wider community interpretations of Islamic teaching on corporal punishment, as well as that of religious scholars, all the participants were asked about this.

Most respondents believed that Islam support the corporal punishment of children under certain conditions. As one teacher (T-01) described;

[Well our religion Islam teaches us about the concept of moderation so we

should follow it in child related issues as well though Islam also supports

corporal punishment for prayers but the said child should be punished in

isolation. I believe if some other alternative methods were developed instead of

corporal punishment our religious scholars will also accept it if it is within

Islamic teachings]

It’s a fact that Islam teaches us to be fair in all matters but in reality, very few people follow this concept instead they go to extremes in some matters. In this context another teacher (T-03) stated;

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[Islam teaches us about mercy, kindness and affection, those people who are

using corporal punishment are usually misinterpreting the Islamic teachings.

The nature of the religious scholar, the type of method and the situation in which

it will be applied will determine the approval of alternative methods instead of

corporal punishment for child discipline]

This teacher considers its practice as a misinterpretation of Islamic teaching as Islam is a religion of mercy, kindness, affection and love. Religious scholars have given a detailed description of the Islamic teachings related to child rearing and corporal punishment. As a religious scholar (RS-01) on the concept of corporal punishment stated;

[Well the Haditah which supports its practice is related to the prayers and

obviously violation of it is a violation of Islamic teachings and discipline in that

case you can punish a child after 10 years but on the other hand first we have to

understand this Haditah in detail. It states that up to 7 years, teach your child

about the prayers, after 7-10 years order them to pray and after 10 years if they

are not praying then corporally punish them but within the limits. It is also stated

that you can punish the child for discipline purposes but as mentioned within

certain limits. Our Holy Prophet (PBUH) never punished a child in his whole

life, he always showed kindness, mercy and affection towards children. Child

punishment is usually due to the personal anger of the teacher and our religion

also emphasises controlling your anger and to show mercy and kindness for

children. You cannot hit a child on the face as the face is the composition of all

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the beauties of a person and Islam forbids it. Islamic thinkers have set three

guidelines for behaviour correction and discipline which are; (1) Advice, (2)

cut-off of relationship for the time being and (3) corporal punishment but within

certain limits so that it should not be painful]

This religious scholar has drawn a detailed picture of the Islamic teachings related to corporal punishment. Islam supports its practice for prayers after the age of 10 years but at the same time provides a 3 years gap (7-10 years) for behaviour modification and it focuses on the virtues of love, kindness, mercy and affection in dealing with the children. The scholar recognises that personal anger can also be linked with corporal punishment but that Islam teaches control of personal anger. Finally, three guidelines for behaviour modification have been provided by religious scholars. However, interpretations can vary as another scholar (RS-02) stated;

[Well you can use corporal punishment in some cases as our Holy Prophet

(PBUH) said keep a stick in homes for disciplining purposes]

Two schools of thought prevailed related to this Hadith in Pakistan’s society; some people use it as a reference for corporal punishment while others state that it is a matter of theory and practice as our Holy Prophet (PBUH) never said beat the women and children with a stick and it can only be kept at home so that the women and children may have a fear of punishment so that they may not do anything immoral. On the subject of child rights and protection another religious scholar (RS-03) stated;

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[Well in Islam child rights are (1) to give the child a proper name (2) spend

good and quality time with the child (3) treat them fairly (4) treat them with

love and mercy (5) provide them education both Deeni (Religious) and school

and (6) to provide a healthy environment. Our Holy Prophet (PBUH) said that

“every caretaker will be asked about the people under his/her care”. A child

can be punished for prayers but under these conditions (1) corporal punishment

is a last resort if other methods have failed (2) not on children less than 10 years

(3) it should be appropriate (4) it should not hurt the child physically or

psychologically (5) it should be practiced in a suitable place meaning in

isolation (6) it should not be practiced in anger and (7) it should not be practiced

on sensitive parts of the body]

Although corporal punishment appears to be supported it can only be practiced under certain guidelines provided by the Islamic teachings. It is clear from the responses from participants that is not the case; these guidelines are not always followed by the either parents or teachers. In continuation to this another participant (RS-04) stated;

[Yes, you can use it but it should not lead to the development of hatred, initially

you have to bring artificial anger on your face so that the child may stop the

wrong-doings and besides this you cannot beat the child on the face, head and

belly. Personally, I am not supportive to corporal punishment as there is a Pashto

proverb ‘chi pa gwara marr kege nu zahro ta ya sa ajat day30’]

30 Its means if you can achieve your goal by love than there is no need for punishment.

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This religious scholar is of the opinion that behaviour modification can be achieved by love and kindness so there is no need for corporal punishment, even though Islam supports its practice under certain conditions. In this context another scholar (RS-07) stated;

[Well I am quoting Hazrat Ali (RA) sayings, he stated that just love your child

up to 6 years, after 6 to 9 years just teach the child to do it and do not do it, from

9 to 14 years if the child does anything wrong just warn the child verbally and

after 14 years deal with the child as a friend. If some other methods for

behaviour modification were developed personally I would be agreed upon that

if it did not violate out religious teachings and cultural values]

This scholar provides a detailed description for child development by providing guidelines of how to deal with a child in every stage of his/her childhood. With reference to these interpretations this non-government organization worker (NGO-08) stated;

[Well Islam teaches us to deal the children with love, kindness and mercy but

also supports corporal punishment in some cases like prayers and the Islamic

Ideological Council of Pakistan also agree upon it. To be very honest I believe

to pay some money to the religious scholars and they will be agreed upon the

alternative methods instead of corporal punishment]

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The Islamic Ideological Council supports corporal punishment for child discipline and behaviour modification and this is amongst the various reasons that the country does not have proper legislation for the abolishment of corporal punishment. In this regard another participant (NGO-09) stated;

[Well in an Islamic perspective you can punish a child for “tadeeb-o-tadbeer”

(Discipline and Behaviour Modification) but Imam Ghazali31 said that first is to

give advice and guidance to your child. You must give a gesture to your child

about his/her behaviour, second give the child advice, thirdly council the child

for the deviant behaviour and finally punish the child but not more than three

sticks]

Thus, although the practice of corporal punishment is usually linked with religious teachings in Pakistan, there are variations in evidence of interpretation of these teachings by the wider community. In general, it might be proposed that few people follow the real meaning of Islamic teaching and may not understand the logic behind them. For example, a psychologist (CP-01) stated;

[Well to be very honest I am unaware about the specific Islamic teachings for

child development but I have heard from some that you can punish a child for

prayers but after 10 years]

31 Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ghazālī shortened as Al-Ghazali in Arabic or Ghazali in Persian and known as Algazelus or Algazel to the Western medieval world, was a Persian theologian, jurist, philosopher, and mystic.

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Some elements of the teachings are generally drawn on the support corporal punishment but without the nuances of compassion, mercy and kindness and any emphasis on the developmental aspects that are accentuated within Islam. This parent, for example, stated (P-02);

[Well I have heard from a religious scholar that you can punish the child for

prayers but after 10 years of age and within limits. I believe that the religious

scholars will agree if some other methods were developed instead of corporal

punishment if it is within the limit of Islamic teachings but it will also be a hard

task]

It is clear that the development of alternative methods of behaviour modification and, moreover, to enable both religious scholars and other community members to be convinced by them is challenging. As there are different school of thought within the religion of Islam and every sect, and different understandings and interpretations by teachers, parents and other stakeholders, each looking at the issue as per their own knowledge, it will be a really hard task to change attitudes against the practice.

6.10 Legislative Measure for Eliminating Corporal Punishment

The Government of Pakistan does not have any proper legislation related to corporal punishment due to various social, cultural and religious factors, as reviewed in Chapter

3. On the issue of legislation, a teacher (T-01) stated;

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[Well in my view it depends on the culture of every country and we have a

culture and religious doctrine that supports corporal punishment to some extent.

Personally, I am not satisfied with the government measures in dealing with the

issue of corporal punishment in schools]

The cultural and religious dominancy in the country makes it really hard to have effective legislation for child rights. In this context another teacher (T-02) stated;

[Well frankly speaking we need to have care and respect for child welfare and

child rights by our selves as children are not a government priority, that’s why

they do not have any clear-cut policy for their rights and protection]

Pakistan is confronted with numerous socio-economic issues so the government is less able to properly focus on the child related issues. As I have detailed, efforts have been made but these have not been successful; section 89 of PPC still supports corporal punishment, for example. This leads to ambiguity in interpretation of the law and community members recognise this as a teacher (T-05) stated;

[In my view it is a debatable issue and it involved conflict of interest of different

people and the government]

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The government is unable to overwrite the section 89 of PPC as some of the religious parties always remain in an alliance with the government so they create hurdles in approving laws which are related to child and women’s issues. Although Pakistan ratified the UNCRC in 1990 it has been unable to implement it fully. In this context a teacher (T-06) stated;

[I believe that section 89 of PPC cannot be abolished and the UNCRC cannot

be implemented properly as we have a religiously and culturally dominant

society and besides this the government interest is also a key factor and they are

not keen on the abolishment of section 89 and implementation of UNCRC]

Some participants presented a different view (T-07);

[Well frankly speaking Pakistan ratified UNCRC to get international funding

and to create a global impression that they are keen to deal with child related

issues but indeed they are not interested in child related issues]

The validity of this claim could be disputed, but it is one perspective that is clearly held by some stakeholders. When the religious scholars were asked about section 89 of the

Pakistan Penal Code and the UNCRC similar views concerning cultural and religious interests were given, as a religious scholar (RS-03) stated;

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[Well our government in not much interested in resolving children issues that’s

why they have not given proper attention to these issues. Besides this, culture

and religious values also play a key role in this regard as the UNCRC violates

some of our basic values]

In terms of legislation on child protection three factors; cultural, religious and government interest are considered as the main hurdles. Another religious scholar (RS-

07) gave a more detailed picture of PPC;

[Well PPC is the composition of Islamic, Hindu and traditional law while it has

also used the term “if” which is subject to condition. PPC is a binding law for

the country while UNCRC is recommended. As per my knowledge UNCRC is

under process but it will take time for its proper implementation]

Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) is the binding law for Pakistan and corporal punishment cannot be abolished until and unless the section 89 of PPC is over-written. On the implementation of the UNCRC an NGO participant (NGO-01) stated;

[In my view our government is not keen to have a proper legislation over the

issue of corporal punishment and its proper implementation. I believe that the

main cause responsible for not implementing the UNCRC properly is the

misconception about it that it’s a western trap so that we may lose hold over our

children. Frankly speaking I am personally not satisfied from the government

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measures for the prohibition of corporal punishment as they do not have a clear-

cut policy on the issue]

This fear of the UNCRC as a ‘western trap’ is further endorsement of the importance of traditional cultural values that underpin the legislative process in Pakistan. Yet, as we have seen, interpretations of Islamic teachings strongly support the foundational principles of the UNCRC and it is difficult to interpret the convention to mean that a state would lose control over its children. Indeed, all state signatories would be concerned about this if that were the case. However, this misconception creates a possible hurdle to its full implementation. Still on the subject of section 89 of the PPC another NGO participant (NGO-09) stated;

[Well section 89 of PPC has used the terms ‘faith’ and ‘benefit’ and these cannot

be defined so it is a contentious issue. The government has developed the

Prohibition of Corporal Prohibition Bill, 2014 but it has not been approved by

the Senate of Pakistan due to the section 89 of PPC as both of them contradict

each other]

Section 89 of PPC has stated that an act can be done in good faith for the benefit of a child but as no one has clear variable of how to measure ‘good faith’ and ‘benefit’ this makes it a debatable issue. Some participants also considered the UNCRC as paper work as this NGO participant (NGO-08) stated;

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[Well our religion and culture support section 89 and the government has just

signed the UNCRC to show the world that they have care for children, it’s just

a paper work and nothing else, children are not a government priority]

It is a common perception in Pakistan that people consider every work or initiative of the government as ‘paper work’ and this can lead to allegations that there are other motives for such legal actions, in this case to create a particular impression to the outside world. Similar views were also given by a child psychologist (CP-05);

[Indeed, our government does not have any interest in these issues and our

political system is not mature that’s why our politicians also face severe

problems in policy formulation and its practical implementation. Besides this,

socio-cultural and religious factors are the main hurdles]

The participants used the semiotics of ‘religion’, ‘culture’, government prioritizes’ and

‘government interest’ for hurdles in the proper legislation and its implementation. The world view of the participants consider socio-cultural and religious factors are the main hurdles in the proper legislation on corporal punishment along with the government prioritizes in developing proper legislation and its implementation on the child rights and protection. It’s a fact that Pakistan political system is not so mature as compared to some western world or developed countries, hence policy formulation and its proper implementation is in continuous development, but implementation requires resources and these are often diverted to other policy issues that take priority.

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6.11 NGO’s Role for Eliminating Corporal Punishment

Various non-government organizations are working in Pakistan for child rights and child protection therefore participants from non-government organizations were also interviewed to understand their approaches in dealing with the issue of corporal punishment. In this context a participant (NGO-01) stated;

[Well we have started different slogans for child education like such as “maar

nahin pyar32” and “taleem jo pyar say di jay asar rakti hay33”. We have also

started a campaign for child rights through FM radio known as “mera bachpan”

(my childhood). Besides this we have provided training to teachers on

alternative methods for disciplining the child and also coordinated with the

educational department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in this regard]

These slogans have been wall chalked in Peshawar and other parts of Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa and awareness regarding this was also created in schools. As the participant stated training was also provided to teachers but in reality, reviewing responses in interview, these attempts directed at the mezzo level appear to have had no or very little impact on the school environment. In continuation of this theme another

NGO participant (NGO-02) stated;

32 No corporal punishment but only love. 33 Education that has been given with love has an everlasting impact.

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[We have arranged training for government school’s teachers on alternative

methods for discipline and worked on strengthening the Parent-Teacher’s

Councils (PTC) for dealing with the issue of corporal punishment. Well frankly

speaking during the trainings the participants support our point of view but

when they go back to schools they do practice corporal punishment. Besides

this we have drafted a bill on the elimination of corporal punishment to the

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government]

It’s a fact that during the trainings participants do agree with the point of view of the trainers but as there is a gap between the theory and practice in Pakistan so when they go back to schools they still practice corporal punishment.

The electronic media is strong in Pakistan and sometimes there are reports about brutal cases of corporal punishment either in homes or schools, due to which various non- government organizations have also started campaigns to create awareness among the public in this regard. NGOs offer some redressal mechanisms, as one NGO participant

(NGO-07) explained;

[Well if a case of corporal punishment is reported to us or we may become aware

of such things by other means we initially do a First Investigation Report (FIR)

with the concerned police station. After that we do an inquiry with the

Additional District Education Officer (ADEO) and then the court decides about

the case but it is also a fact that few cases are registered with us as usually they

resolve the issue at community level]

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Though NGO’s have developed quite systematic redressal mechanisms, unfortunately very few cases are reported to them. This may be due to cultural factors, as identified by previous respondents, but also because these cases have the potential to create enmity between people at the community level. Thus, they are resolved at that level by the Jirga34. Indeed sometimes the NGO worker also faces threats in this context (see, for example Daily Dawn June 01, 2012). In addition to this another participant (NGO-

08) described their role in supporting legislative change;

[We worked on the implementation of the Child Protection and Welfare Act

(2010) of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. We have also arranged the

penal discussions with teachers on the negative impacts of corporal punishment

but people perceive it as a phenomenon which has been boosted by the western

countries]

In 2010 the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa passed the Child Protection and

Welfare Act which bans the corporal punishment of children but it has been not implemented properly due to the religious hurdles. In continuation to this another participant (NGO-10) stated;

[We have arranged training on child rights, training for teachers on alternative

methods and also worked on the legislation for the elimination of corporal

34 A jirga is a traditional assembly of leaders that make decisions by consensus and according to the teachings of Pashtunwali. It predates modern-day written or fixed-laws and is conducted to settle disputes among the Pashtun people.

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punishment. Besides this we also worked on friendly classrooms and

strengthening the PTC. In addition, we did lobbying with the Education

Minister and Secretary for Education in this regard and pressurized the

government through media]

Though various organization are working for child protection but indeed it’s a multi- faced phenomenon and to fully address it a holistic and decisive approach is needed that brings all the stakeholders to a consensus.

6.12 How to deal with Corporal Punishment?

How to deal with the issue of corporal punishment is a difficult question to answer.

Various responses were received in this context. A holistic approach was supported by some, as one teacher (T-01) stated;

[In my view our teaching system needs to be revised. It should be made more

activity based or more practical than theoretical, creating community awareness

through different means including media, local government representatives and

to provide a positive picture of the alternative methods instead of corporal

punishment]

The educational system of Pakistan is still the same as it was when it was adopted in

1947, although the curriculum has been changed with the passage of time. However, little attention has been given to the application of modern techniques in teaching. In

183 contrast, one teacher placed the emphasis on the need for change outside the school and the classroom at the mezzo and macro level (T-02);

[Well it can only be done by behaviour change in the community, culture

modification and keen government interest]

While another teacher considered the need for change should begin at the macro level and translate to the school environment (T-09);

[The government should reduce the teacher’s frustration and increase their

satisfaction which will automatically leads to the minimization of corporal

punishment]

As mentioned earlier, teachers suffer from low salaries and poor promotion prospects and this leads to their frustration. These issues need to be resolved by the government and, according to this respondent, this would minimize the practice of corporal punishment. An alternative view was put forward by a religious scholar (RS-02) who suggested;

[Well if we properly followed the Islamic teachings for child rearing, the

teacher should consider the child as his/her own child and that teacher should

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have control over his/her own anger then this issue could be resolved to some

extent]

Thus, this religious scholar draws on the teachings of Islam for a solution. In contrast to this, in order to eliminate corporal punishment, an NGO participant (NGO-01) stated;

[In my opinion first, the government needs to have proper legislation to deal

with the issue and a sound complaint mechanism to deal with such cases.

Second, awareness needs to be raised among local populations about the

negative impacts of corporal punishment along with providing training to

teachers on alternative methods for discipline]

So, the focus here is on legislative measures, teacher training and public awareness.

This was supported by another NGO participant (NGO-09);

[In my view for the elimination of corporal punishment from schools general

mass awareness needs to be created by the government with the collaboration

of non-government organizations, incorporation of alternative methods for

discipline in teaching manuals, in service training and capacity building of the

teachers, problem solving mechanism for children in schools through social

workers and psychologists, proper legislation over the issue and its

implementation and proper job description for teachers and clear-cut statement

about the practice of corporal punishment]

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As many respondents noted, teachers have to manage challenging classroom settings and this quote acknowledges that additional expertise may be required to understand and manage child behaviour issues, such as Social Workers and Child Psychologists.

In continuation to this another participant (CP-09) stated;

[Well in my view a teacher should not give homework to the child which is

beyond the capacity of the child, the government should employ a psychologist

in every school to deal with child behaviour issues and try to build a positive

relationship between the teacher and the child and the government should also

include alternative methods for discipline and behaviour modification in B.Ed.

and M.Ed. courses for the teachers]

From a parent’s perspective the solutions were more at a micro and mezzo level. One parent (P-06) stated;

[Well if the teachers become sincere with their job and do their work morally

and ethically than this issue will automatically be resolved besides this the PTC

should be strengthen and the issue of corporal punishment need to be addressed

in these meetings]

Finally, this participant mentioned the concept of sincerity in one’s work on the basis that if someone is sincere and loyal with his/her job anything can be achieved without the practice of violence. They also advocate a greater role for the PTC’s, which could

186 prove to be an influential mechanism at the mezzo level if general agreement about the negative impacts of corporal punishment can be maintained.

The participants used the semiotics of ‘teaching system’, ‘community awareness’,

‘behaviour change’, ‘culture modification’, ‘government interest’, ‘teachers satisfaction’, ‘Islamic teachings’, ‘alternative methods’ and ‘proper legislation’ for dealing with the issue of corporal punishment. The world view highlighted that it is a multifaced phenomenon and a multi-dimensional approach is desirable to deal with it.

6.13 Summary

This chapter elaborates the perceptions of different stakeholders associated with the issue of corporal punishment. The sample consisted of parents, teachers, religious scholars, child psychologists and non-government organization workers. Some of the participants were found supportive to its practice while some were against it. The most common types of corporal punishment reported as practiced are slapping, twisting the arm and ear, beating with a stick, shoe, hands and more rarely, the use of electric or telephonic wires on the buttocks and hands. The intensity of the practice varied from person to person and place to place. Among the causative factors overcrowded classes, incompetency of the teachers, child and teacher’s behaviour, lack of alternative methods and deviation from religious teachings are some key factors to be mentioned.

Participants associated the practice of corporal punishment with aggression in children, poor cognitive development, poor academic performance, humiliation, disgrace and lack of motivation and creativity. It also causes anti-social personality disorder and criminal tendencies in long run. It is also a violation of basic human rights and deviation

187 from Islamic teachings for child rearing and personality development. These impacts varied according to stakeholder group. People considered its practice legal with no effective legislation against it. Participants suggested that it can be abolished if the government shows their interest and develops proper legislation and ensures its implementation. In addition, there was some consensus that public awareness, teacher training on alternative methods and following the Islamic teachings will help in this regard.

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Chapter 7

Findings from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in a Global Context

7.1 Preamble

In the previous chapter participants views were presented through discourse analysis.

In this chapter I have analysed the views of participants with respect to the previous studies conducted on the issue of corporal punishment around the world.

7.2 Corporal punishment around the world and in Pakistan: Support vs non- support

Support and non-support for the practice of corporal punishment has prevailed around the world with corporal punishment receiving the support of law and religious teachings over at least the last thousand years (Society for Adolescent Medicine, 2003). A similar position was also presented by Salazar et al., (2014) who confirm that its practice remains legal, socially and culturally acceptable in many parts of the world. Parke

(2002) presented three different contemporary views prevailing on corporal punishment. These views are pro-corporal, in which teachers are completely supportive of its practice, anti-corporal in which people are totally against its practice due to its negative impacts and finally, conditional corporal punishment, in which it has been concluded that its practice is neither positive or negative but it’s mainly depends on the nature of offence and severity of punishment. Similar opinions were also found in this study where participants reported that corporal punishment is still an acceptable phenomenon in Pakistan. For example, the teacher (T-02) who reported that they personally supported its practice to some extent as they must control children to stop them doing anything which is immoral or unethical. It was also noted that Islam allows

189 its practice within certain limits. Other teachers were of the same opinion such as T-04 who stated that they personally did not support its practice but that they are unable to work without it as schools are overcrowded and the children are so aggressive and naughty that they do not have any other option. The saying in Pashto ‘chi charta dabb wi alta adab wi’ (discussed earlier) was drawn on as an endorsement along with the recognition that it would be hard for teachers to work without it.

Corporal punishment also has the support of religious teachings around the world

(Menard, 2013) and this also applies to Pakistan. In my interviews the practice was supported by religious scholars, such as RS-01 who stated that he personally supported its mild practice for behaviour correction and discipline as there is a concept of reward and punishment in Islam as well under certain conditions which have been highlighted by Islamic teaching. Somewhat unpredictably, in Pakistan, a few of the participants working in child protection were also found to be supportive. Participant NGO-04 agreed with its practice to some extent, qualifying this by saying they meant mild corporal punishment for the purposes of child grooming (meaning socialisation) and discipline on the basis that Islam also supports its practice and it is culturallly approved indeed it’s an appropriate method as in Pakistan there is what was described as a more coercive culture. Among child psychologists there was also support with CP-07 supporting it up to a mild level in extreme cases for behaviour correction and academic achievements but only if all other measures for this purpose fail to do so. Parental support for its practice also prevailed. For example, parent (P-04) stated they personally

I supported its practice if its aim is the benefit of the child and as teachers are spiritual parents so they are in good position to make a proper decision for the child’s character building and achievement of academic goals.

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Naz et al., (2011) reported that many countries have banned the practice of corporal punishment as they considered it a violation of basic human rights, human dignity and a threat to child physical and mental health. Some nations have developed policies and legislation for its abolition with the help of different welfare agencies operating for the welfare and protection of children. In line with this strategy, some participants were also found to be non-supportive of the practice of corporal punishment in Pakistan. In this context, a teacher (T-01) stated that although teachers use it quite often and it can be beneficial for short term compliance and maintaining class discipline, he personally was totally against its practice as it is not beneficial in the long run because it develops different types of problems in later life. Others supported this view stating that the practice creates hatred towards the teacher and the school, drawing on a Pashto proverb

“pa zoor kali na kege35”.

Although religious support for its practice prevails around the world (Menard, 2013) but some religious scholars in my data offered an alternative view. RS-06 for example, stated he did not support its practice and believed in ‘innamat-o-tanbihat’ (advice and rewards) for child direction and behaviour modification. Indeed, many people did not appear to understand this interpretation of Ayat and Hadith and seemed to misinterpret it with corporal punishment actually being the cause of these misinterpretation. RS-09 similarly did not support its practice as it was a deviation from the meaning of Islamic teachings, as Islam teaches us to be kind, loving and affectionate to children. Different non-governmental organizations are working in Pakistan for the elimination of corporal punishment and child protection and in this context an NGO participant (NGO-09)

35 This means that you cannot win the hearts of others by force.

191 represented the views of many others when he stated he was totally against its practice as it causes severe mental and physical health issues to children both in the short and long run.

In the main, psychologists did not support its practice. CP-04 described it as a rigid method for child development which makes a child anti-social. Some considered it a wrong method for educating the child, as P-06 asserted, education cannot be learned through the use of physical force or violence because ‘in my view this type of education is useless’.

It would appear that people who are more educated do not consider its practice compulsory for socialisation and character building but the ratio of these people is not high in Pakistan (Suleman et al., 2014).

Some opinions reflected the concept of conditional corporal punishment (Parke, 2002)

In that context as a teacher (T-05) stated, the impacts of corporal punishment mainly depend on the nature of offence, type and extent of the punishment. Besides this the relationships between the student and teacher also play a key role in this regard. This teacher, similar to other respondents, supported its practice on a mild level, believing that children need to be punished because it is hard to control them without it. Other participants justified conditional corporal punishment based on the nature of offence and type of punishment for behaviour modification and academic achievements describing it as ‘character building’. Though the participants considered its practice as

192 having both negative and positive impacts on children, they declared their support due to the religious and cultural acceptability of the phenomenon.

7.3 The causative factors of corporal punishment around the world and Pakistan

Holden and Ashraf (2016) reported that the main causes of corporal punishment of children are the religious support and conflict between teachers and the students.

Religion plays a key role in boosting the problem of corporal punishment and also provides an ‘important culture distinction’ for it. Teachers who are more religious will practice it more and in the literature it is reported that religious scholars consider it their moral responsibility to discipline the child even if this means practicing corporal punishment (Menard, 2013 and Gershoff, 2010). Whilst this is applicable to some other religions, Pakistan is an Islamic state where the laws mainly follow the Islamic values for life. Islam teaches us to be kind, loving and affectionate when dealing with women and children and this has also been quite clear from the preaching’s of the Holy Prophet

(PBUH) who was a great advocate of mercy and kindness with children (see Hasan,

1993, Alanazi, 2008 and Khan, 1997). Although Islam supports these values, it also allows the practice of corporal punishment for character building and controlling the anti-social behaviour of the child (see Al-Mutrik, 1999 and Alanazi, 2008). Holden and

Ashraf (2016) reported that corporal punishment is only mentioned in the Hadith and the Holy Quran does not have any text related to its practice. The Hadith supports its practice for prayers only and it allows several years prior to the age of 10 for behaviour modification (see Al-Nasser and Darwish, 1991). Interestingly, in this study two points of view were given with respect to the religious position towards the practice of corporal punishment. Some participants held that it’s an outcome of the religious

193 teachings whereas some considered it as a misinterpretation of Islamic teaching related to child socialisation and character building. For example, a teacher (T-08) echoed the views of many when he stated that usually people practice corporal punishment as our religion Islam also supports it and some of the teachers are also qualified from

Madrassa’s so they are familiar with its practice there. By way of contrast, a religious scholar (RS-01) described its practice as a deviation from the Islamic teachings as Islam teaches about mercy and kindness with children. It also places emphasise on the control of anger which many teachers ignore because the practice of corporal punishment is mainly due to the personal anger of the teacher.

The religious factor for corporal punishment cannot be underestimated as Pakistan is a country which has been dominated the Religion of Islam and the public are subject to

Islamic teaching. The fact that religious scholars held quite different interpretations on the practice of corporal punishment in my data, as did many other stakeholders interpretations of religious teachings, suggests that the authentic meaning is not agreed and needs further clarification.

UNICEF (2001) reported that in some countries corporal punishment is considered as an essential component for children’s learning and academic achievements. This report highlighted that the children in schools are being corporally punished due to their subordinate position, their lack of authority and power. One assumption is that children are immature and they are unable to make appropriate decisions about their academic studies and that teachers have the right to transmit knowledge to the children even if this means practicing corporal punishment. In addition to this, Tiwari (2013) reported

194 that in Asian countries corporal punishment is administered mainly for academic purposes while in the West its purpose is to correct the wrong doings of a child in the home, although this practice is becoming increasingly rare. During this study, several supported this view; many referred to its use in relation to poor academic performance, as a last resort for achieving academic goals and disciplining the child if other methods such as advice and guidance fail. One teacher noted that students only memorize the things they learn in the schools due to the fear of corporal punishment, which then enables them to gain good grades in exams. Parents agreed that corporal punishment is mainly used for the correction of child behaviour and academic achievements. Thus, both teachers and parents consider its practice necessary. This is to be expected as corporal punishment is so deeply embedded in the culture of Pakistan, and the practice will have been learned through personal experience, which has resulted in a lack of awareness about alternative and more effective methods for education that encourage academic achievement and healthy child development.

Breen et al., (2015) draw a clear line between the micro level which are the individual’s personal attributes and the macro level which are the societal factors that either maximize or minimize the practice of corporal punishment. In this study, a quiet similar stance was presented. For example, the teacher (T-01) who stated its practice is due to the cultural acceptability of the phenomenon in our society, neither the parents nor the teacher considered it to be a harmful method for child behaviour modification and discipline, which was attributed to their personal experience of it in childhood.

Similarly, another teacher (T-06) claimed the majority of teachers habitually practiced corporal punishment while another (T-07) linked it to societal factors ranging from a lack of awareness among the public to societal acceptance of the phenomenon.

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Save the Children (2010) reported that the main cause of the corporal punishment is the teacher’s incompetency in dealing with disciplinary issues. The present study finds support for this. Teacher (T-06) stated that some teachers practice it to hide their incompetency as they are unable to make a distinction between discipline problems and their solution which makes them habitually resort to corporal punishment as the only solution they are aware of. Religious scholars were of a similar opinion; (RS-05) stated that teachers use it to have dominancy in the class and to hide their incompetency and

(RS-10) considered that a teacher’s own frustration, attitude and incompetency played a key role in this regard, leading them to develop a violent attitude to deal with it and gain control over the children.

Durrant (2005) underlined that a teacher’s poor academic background and lack of understanding of how to communicate through teaching techniques with the student has given rise to the practice of corporal punishment in schools. Ateah and Durrant (2005) reported that teachers make their own interpretation of child behaviour and in return practice corporal punishment in line with their interpretation. This study also revealed that participants considered the educational background and socio-economic status of the teacher played a critical role in promoting corporal punishment. In this regard, a religious scholar (RS-10) stated that a teacher’s own attitude and their personal problems and frustration are the factors which lead to the practice. Several other stakeholders were of a similar opinion; an NGO worker (NGO-08) mentioned the frustration and inefficiency of the teachers while a child psychologist thought teachers’ lack of competency and understanding of child behavioural issues were important. One participant (NGO-09) maintained that teachers do not give priority to their job, doing it part time as their main work is elsewhere such as running their own businesses. In

196 addition he blamed a lack of awareness of child rights and alternative methods and overcrowded schools are some of the other factors responsible. In this context Eamon

(2001) also concluded that the practice of corporal punishment is associated with the educational level of its practitioner and in those societies where illiteracy is at a maximum level or the educational status is not so good, approval for its practice is greater compared to those societies where the educational level is high.

UNICEF (2001) reported that the practice of corporal punishment is a complex phenomenon that does not have a single cause. Lack of accountability of teachers, poor educational tools and untrained teachers are a few of the most contributory factors in this regard. An important factor is the lack of redress. For example, an NGO worker noted that there is no complaint mechanism available and as a consequence teachers do not have any fear of accountability. A child psychologist also mentioned the lack accountability mechanisms including that there is no active monitoring team provided by the government to facilitate reports of cases of corporal punishment in schools.

Although the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa started an Independent Monitoring

Unit (IMU) in 2014 for schools, unfortunately it has not dealt with the issue of corporal punishment.

Durrant (2005) highlighted cultural factors responsible for the practice of corporal punishment in various parts of the world. Salazar et al., (2014) also reported that culture is one of the main contributing factors. The study also finds that its practice is severe in those regions where people regarding it as normal. In this study, a teacher (T-01) also stated that in our country the cultural acceptability of the corporal punishment can be

197 regarded as one of the main contributing factor for its practice. Indeed, both the teachers and parents did not consider it as a harmful method of child development considering cultural and religious factors responsible for its practice. As one noted ‘We learn from our elders that if we did not punish our children and women then we will lose control over them and they will disobey you in future’.

Other previous studies revealed that the practice of corporal punishment is transmitted from one generation to another; if a person received corporal punishment in childhood than there is a great probability that he/she will practice it in later or adult life (Ghate et al., 2003 and Straus, 2010). In this study similar views were also presented by a child psychologist (CP-01) as she stated that either a parent or teacher’s past experience of corporal punishment in childhood increases the probability that he/she will practice it in adult life as they consider it is a legitimate and moral way to control or correct the behaviour of children. Similarly, a teacher (T-01) stated that neither the parents nor the teachers considered it as a harmful method due to their personal experience in childhood. Another, (T-07) observed that if a teacher received love, affection and kindness in childhood so he will do the same in adult life but if he/she received pain and punishment so he/she will return this to the society in adult life.

Religious factor were also highlighted by different studies as one of the contributing factor for its practice. These studies revealed that those teachers or parents who are more religious considered the child development and discipline as their moral duty and they practice corporal punishment for this purpose. Their aim is the well-being and betterment of the child (see Menard, 2013 and Gershoff, 2010). This study on the other

198 hand provides a more in depth view of the religious factor. Many participants gave their opinion based on the Islamic teaching. For example, the teacher (T-08) who highlighted that people usually practice it as Islam supports corporal punishment and the parent (P-

09) who was clear that ‘our religion supports its practice and is one of the contributing factor for its practice’.

Besides these views some participants consider it as a deviation from the Islamic teachings. One religious scholar (RS-01) stated its practice is a deviation from the

Islamic teachings as Islam teaches about mercy and kindness with children which we do not follow in this case and on the other hand Islam also emphasizes control of anger and he considered the practice of corporal punishment is mainly due to the personal anger of the teacher.

Gorea (2015) reported that the practice of corporal punishment is a multi-faceted phenomenon with multi-dimensional factors. It is not the outcome of a single factor but a composition or outcome of numerous factors. In this context a religious scholar (RS-

07) outlined some of those he considered relevant including; the need to maintain control in the class and to keep the children in a state of fear and suppression, to hide teacher’s incompetency and frustration, the teacher’s attitude, most teachers are incompetent in dealing with child related issues and to hide their incompetency they have developed a violent attitude to gain control in the classroom, teachers and students are tired and stressed due to power shortages or electricity load shedding, overcrowded classes, student’s family background and the economic issues of the teachers. Similarly a teacher (T-07) considered a number of factors; illiteracy in society, a lack of

199 awareness of child rights and the negative consequences of corporal punishment, the family background where the family consider it as legitimate and beneficial for the child and habitual practice by teachers in order to hide incompetency.

Thus, my data strongly supports that corporal punishment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is not the outcome of a single factor but a composition of many various factors including student and child attributes, school environment, infrastructure, overcrowded classes, work load on the teachers, untrained and insufficiently qualified teachers, lack of accountability, lack of parental interest in child education along with the religious and cultural support.

7.4 Long Term Compliance: Physiological, Psychological and Sociological impacts of corporal punishment on children

Zolotor and Puzia (2010) reported that the impacts of corporal punishment may be examined in both a negative and positive way. Straus et al., (1997) stated that the main purpose of its practice is to minimize the anti-social behaviour of a child but its long- term impacts on anti-social behaviours can be negative as it increases the likelihood of its occurrence in the long run. Zoysa et al., (2006) report that corporal punishment is ineffective in controlling or minimizing the anti-social behaviour of children while

Gamez-Guadix, et al., (2010) reported that its practice not only increases the occurrence of anti-social behaviour but also develops criminal tendencies in later life. The present study revealed how these negative impacts might develop. For example, several participants stated corporal punishment develops feelings of hatred towards school in children. One teacher (T-02) noted that its practice plays both a positive and negative

200 role; it is used to control anti-social behaviour but this has negative impacts and in some cases it increases the occurrence of anti-social behaviour. Others agreed; with one teacher (T-01) stating that it not only increases the probability of anti-social behaviour but also sometimes develops criminal tendencies in adult life.

Gershoff et al., (2015) reported that the practice of corporal punishment sometimes leads to child physical abuse. They also state that injuries in schools are often due to the practice of corporal punishment as the students are being punished with a wooden stick or paddles. Taylor et al., (2011) reported that risk of physical abuse is associated with corporal punishment they also added that a number of reported cases of physical abuse are due to irrational and inappropriate corporal punishment. In this context Block

(2013) reported that injuries which are a consequence of excessive corporal punishment

(i.e. physical abuse) include bruises, cuts, muscle damage, nerve damage and broken bones affecting various parts of the body such as the face, arms, buttocks and sexual organs. This study also in one way or another highlighted the same issue of physical abuse which can be an outcome of corporal punishment in schools. As a teacher (T-01) stated, its practice sometimes leads to the physical abuse of children as in rare cases teachers are unable to control their anger and beat the children brutally. A religious scholar (RS-09) also stated its practice leads to physical abuse and sometimes causes permanent disability. Among parents a participant (P-06) stated that his nephew’s hand was fractured by a teacher punishing him, and another (P-07) stated that his son had been severely injured by a teacher by brutally punishing him. The concerned teacher begged him not to go to the police station as it would destroy his career so the parent forgave him ‘to gain the pleasure of Almighty Allah’.

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Previous studies showed that corporal punishment is used to gain control over the aggression of the child but a meta-analysis of 27 studies finds that no research reported that corporal punishment does so while on the other hand it showed that the more the child receives corporal punishment the more aggressive he/she will become (see

Gershoff, 2002). Corporal punishment is associated with increased aggression in children as it also encourages them to consider its practice as legitimate which in turn increases the rate of aggression in children (Smith, 2006). This study supports these findings; one teacher (T-01) and an NGO worker (NGO-03) both stated that it’s practice develops aggression in the children, as did a child psychologist (CP-02) who observed that its practice develops aggression in children in long run as they are unable to express themselves to the teacher at the time of punishment.

Teenagers or adults who experience corporal punishment in childhood show a greater level of feelings of helplessness, depression and use of violence. In addition, poor mental health, anxiety, disruptive disorders, and low self-esteem are also associated with its practice (see Turner and Finkelhor, 1996, and Holmes and Robins, 1987).

Participants in this study also note negative impacts. Religious scholars (RS-02) were of the opinion that corporal punishment develops fear, anxiety, depression and hatred among children, which may be towards the school, teacher or any adult in the community who is beating the child. Another, (RS-07) stated its practice causes lack of self-respect, self-confidence, loss of discussion and debate power, negative impacts on school performance, hatred towards the school and the teacher and spoils the creativity and thinking power of the child. Similar views were also presented by a child psychologist (CP-01) stated its practice had negative impacts on the emotion of the child, developing fear, low self-esteem and a lack of confidence. An emotionally

202 disturbed child shows poor academic performance which further leads to drop outs from schools or running away from home. It develops hatred towards the teacher and the school and created a situation of mistrust. It also impacts on the personality development of the child and can lead to an industry vs inferiority personality, conduct personalities and criminal tendencies in later life. In this regard, a teacher (T-01) stated that the practice of corporal punishment develop fear, frustration, lack of courage, hesitation and shyness in children which in adult life creates mental health problems and disruptive disorders.

Grusec and Goodnow (1994) reported that the practice of corporal punishment had negative impacts on the relationship between the child and the teacher. They stated that corporal punishment causes pain in the children due to which they start hating the teacher which develops a rift between them. Support for this claim was found in the present study. Teacher (T-02) stated that its practice developed feelings of hatred in the child towards the concerned teacher and the child then starts to ignore the teacher which causes a gap between the teacher and a child. Similar views were presented by religious scholars (RS-02 and RS-03) who also stated that corporal punishment creates a gap between the child and the teacher as its practice develops the feelings of hatred in children towards the teacher. With relevance to this a parent (P-04) narrated a story of a child who, due to its severe practice, was not even going to school and who saw his parents were bringing him to school by force.

Corporal punishment is also associated with negative impacts on the child’s cognitive development. Children learn from their early caregivers, such as parents and teachers,

203 and the practice of corporal punishment can reduce this learning process with negative impacts on the child’s cognitive development (see Paolucci and Violato, 2004 and

Smith, 2006). Save the Children (2005) report that corporal punishment slows cognitive development in children aged between 2-4 and 5-9 years. Views that validate these wider sources were also present in this study. For example, the NGO participant (NGO-

03) and child psychologists (CP-02 and CP-01) who observed that corporal punishment effects cognitive development in a negative way because in their experience it hampers thinking and creativity, self-expression and decision making to the detriment of social relationships. Students who receive corporal punishment do not perform well in school

(Holden and Ashraf, 2016), with negative impacts on child motivation towards school

(Khoury-Kassabri et al., 2014). Ahmad et al., (2013) and Naz et al., (2011) examined the link between corporal punishment and its impacts on child motivation and learning in Pakistan. Both studies concluded that teachers in Pakistan use corporal punishment for the purpose of motivation and child learning but it has the reverse effect, producing poor educational performance and a lack of motivation towards the learning and the school. In the present study teachers who were supportive of its practice similarly considered it beneficial for learning. Teacher (T-01) considered that, in some cases, it is beneficial for academic achievement as our educational system is mainly theoretical and not practical and sometimes when a teacher beats a child for academic purposes the said child learns the topic for which he/she received the punishment without understanding its concept and they write it in the exam if it is in the paper so automatically they get good grades. In this context a religious scholar (RS-05) stated that its practice is sometimes beneficial in the short term for discipline and academic achievements due to our educational system, although noted that longer term impacts were likely to be negative. Some of the parents who were found supportive of its

204 practice also thought its practice as beneficial for academic purposes (see P-02). In contrast, NGO participants recognised the negative impacts on learning (NGO-01 and

NGO-03). They stated that due to the practice of corporal punishment a child also remains in a state of fear and suppression which leads to poor academic performance in schools as the student is unable to express him/herself properly and does not have the confidence to ask questions even when he/she is not clear about the topic. In this context a child psychologist (CP-01) stated that its practice makes the child emotionally disturbed due to which the child is unable to perform well academically. Similar views were also presented by a parent (P-04) who stated its practice causes hatred in children towards the school and the teacher which has negative impacts on the child’s academic performance.

The practice of corporal punishment contributes to a ‘culture of violence’. In countries where its practice is routine, children develop an approval of violence and harsh discipline. In such countries the ratio of violent crimes is also at a high level (Holden and Ashraf, 2016). When children are corporally punished they learn that it’s a suitable way for solving problems (see Holden and Ashraf, 2016 and Graziano, 1994). Child psychologists in this study (CP-06 and CP-07) indicated how violence links to the practice of corporal punishment. The maintained that it causes rigidness and anti-social instincts and children learn that violence is a useful method for achieving their goals.

Children were described as believing in violence and using abusive language which transfers the culture of violence from one generation to the next through social learning process.

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Previous studies also showed a correlation between corporal punishment and school drop out (Naz et al., 2011). Holden and Ashraf (2016) reported that those students whom received corporal punishment in schools do not come to school and later become drop outs. This was also a finding in the present study. NGO participants (NGO-01,

NGO-02 and NGO-09) and a child psychologist (CP-01) stated that its practice causes hatred towards the teacher and the school which ultimately leads to children dropping out of school. It was claimed that students are now shifting from government schools to private schools in order to be secured from the practice of corporal punishment, or they become street children, scavengers or child labourers.

7.5 Short Term Compliance: Obedience, Classroom Management and Academic

Performance

Despite its negative impacts, corporal punishment still receives the support of religious, legal and educational doctrines. Its practice in schools is based on a philosophy of child rearing that requires discipline (Lwo and Yuan, 2011). Gudyanga et al., (2014) note that the effectiveness of corporal punishment is still a contentious and debated issue.

Gershoff et al., (2015) reported that the purpose of corporal punishment is to decrease the probability of anti-social behaviours and increase the occurrence of desirable social behaviours. This study also draws a link between the practice of corporal punishment and the occurrence of desirable behaviours and the minimization of undesirable behaviours. In this connection, a participant (T-03) stated that its practice is beneficial for controlling the occurrence of undesirable behaviours, for maintaining discipline and classroom management. Similar views were also presented by religious scholar (RS-

05) who stated that its practice is beneficial for maintaining discipline and short-term

206 compliance. In addition to this a parent (P-03) stated that its practice is beneficial if practiced within limits. In his view, corporal punishment instils fear in children due to which they become more obedient and disciplined and it also makes children moral as they become aware of the consequences for their wrong doings and they will not do anything which is against the norms and values of the society. Kazdin and Benjet (2003) almost reported the same when they concluded that corporal punishment is beneficial for children to make them obedient and respectable citizens, otherwise they will become disrespectful, violent and even physically aggressive in adult life.

Previous studies also reported that the impacts of corporal punishment depend on the situation and nature of punishment. Some find that the relationship between the teacher and the student is a key factor in making its impacts either positive or negative (see

Larzelere and Kuhn, 2005 and Kazdin and Benjet, 2003). In this study, a teacher (T-05) stated that the impacts of corporal punishment mainly depend on the nature and extent of punishment and also on the type of offence along-with the relationship between the teacher and the child. In continuation to this a similar view was presented by a religious scholar (RS-01) who was also of the same opinion; that its impacts largely depend on the extent and nature of punishment.

Corporal punishment is also associated with achieving academic goals. Some studies report that mild corporal punishment is beneficial in this regard (see Marcus, 2014 and

Suleman et al., 2014). This study also reported support for this purpose; a teacher (T-

01) held the position that the practice of corporal punishment is sometimes beneficial for academic achievements and a religious scholar (RS-05) considered its practice is

207 beneficial for achieving academic goals due to the educational system of our country.

One parent (P-02) was of the view that its practice is beneficial for academic goals as children cannot do their homework if they do not have a fear of corporal punishment in school.

7.6 Practice of Corporal Punishment: Discipline, Class Management and School

Environment

The advantages of corporal punishment in schools are that it’s an easy and low resource method of administration; its effectiveness derives from the giving of physical pain which works to reshape or modify behaviour as no one wants to experience physical pain (see Wilson, 2002). Lwo and Yuan (2011) reported that the practice of corporal punishment in schools is based on child rearing, character building, discipline and class management philosophies. Baumrind (2002) asserts that its moderate or mild practice is beneficial in dealing with behaviour as it makes the children obedient, respectful and disciplined. Similar views were also given by a teacher (T-01) who stated that students are guided in Morning Assembly to maintain discipline and they are also given instructions on discipline by the PTI (Physical Teaching Instructor). If students are still not keeping to the discipline then mild corporal punishment is used, but that is very occasional. The teacher feared that if corporal punishment is abolished then it will have negative impacts on school discipline and the child’s interest in school will be reduced.

Similarly, another teacher (T-02) stated if corporal punishment is abolished then the school system would collapse as he thought the only alternative would be to use advice and guidance for maintaining discipline which he considered inadequate (he quoted a

208 saying in Pashto “da da dabb musalmanan di”). Another teacher (T-04) stated if the human rights representatives stay with us in our school for a longer time than they will also support corporal punishment as our children do not understand another language except punishment. If corporal punishment is completely abolished than it will be very hard for teacher to maintain discipline as we have once tried some alternative methods like advice and guidance for behaviour modification and discipline but that experiment was not satisfied. A religious scholar (RS-02) also held a similar position proposing that its practice is sometimes beneficial for maintaining discipline as our schools are overcrowded with high workloads and teachers are not trained on any alternative method for controlling the class. Providing an alternative view, one teacher (T-05) stated that if a teacher understands and is clear about his or her subject than there will be no need for corporal punishment as usually the teachers practice it to hide their incompetency.

At the mezzo school level, PTC’s provide a potential mechanism for making teachers accountable for the practice, especially where parents disagree with it. However, these are not currently used for this purpose. As one teacher noted (T-01) PTC meeting are held on monthly basis but they usually discuss school infrastructure and issues related to corporal punishment are never discussed in these meetings. Another supported this

(T-05) saying that PTC’s never discuss the issue of corporal punishment. Pointing towards a potential change agent, the same teacher observed that ‘nowadays teachers are afraid of social media and that if they punish a child severely than it will be highlighted by the local people on social media, and well if such thing happened than I believe the parent’s will complain to the Head teacher about this and he/she will resolve the issue by informal means.

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7.7 The concept of legality and illegality related to the practice of Corporal

Punishment

A number of countries around the globe have developed policies and laws to ban corporal punishment not only from schools but also from other places including homes and workplaces (Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children, 2015).

However, although corporal punishment is banned in many countries its practice still prevails where either the law is weak or not available to deal with the it (UNICEF,

2015). Gershoff et al., (2015) reported that its practice is generally more severe in schools as compared to homes and other places. Jabeen (2016) reported that Pakistan is a member of UNCRC which makes the country liable to make proper legislation for the child protection and welfare but unfortunately it can be stated that Pakistan could not pass effective legislation due to constraints from traditional, social, cultural and religious factors. As in the country the treatment of women and children is seen as a personal matter and no intervention from the state is allowed by the family. In this connection, a teacher (T-01) stated that legislation on the issue of corporal punishment depends on the socio-cultural factors of every country. He asserted that Pakistan’s cultural and religious factors also support its practice to some extent, which is why government measures only exist on paper and are not put into practice. Another teacher

(T-06) stated that section 89 of Pakistan Penal Code (discussed earlier) cannot be abolished and the UNCRC cannot be implemented fully as we live in a country which has been dominated by cultural and religious factors (that do not support it). He also alleged that the government is also not keen to develop proper legislation for child rights, protection and welfare as children are not a government priority. In this connection, a teacher (T-07) leant support for section 89 of PPC. He maintained that

Pakistan ratified the UNCRC in order to get foreign funding and create a global

210 impression that they are supportive of child rights and protection but said ‘to be very honest it’s not a reality, this is only politics and paper work’. On the other hand, a religious scholar (RS-07) stated that the UNCRC is in the process of implementation but it will take a long time as Pakistan faces some other severe problems such as power shortages, food scarcity, the law and order situation and political instability. PPC is a binding law for the country where as the UNCRC is recommended.

For abolishing the practice of corporal punishment from schools the National Assembly of Pakistan proposed the “Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill, 2014” (SPARC,

2016). This act provides a fine of 50 thousand rupees or imprisonment for a maximum sentence of one year, or both, for the perpetrator of corporal punishment which is also a bailable offence (Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill, 2014). But up to November

2016 this bill has not been passed from the Senate of Pakistan due to the contradiction with section 89 of PPC (Government of Pakistan, 2016). Questions related to this act were put to the participants who were found to be largely unaware of the act and its consequences. A participant (NGO-09) who was aware of the act stated that it is still under discussion and the Government of Pakistan is still not able to implement it as the

Senate sent it back to the National Assembly because it contradicts section 89 of PPC.

Furthermore, a teacher (T-02) stated that he was unaware of this bill but the District

Education Officer had issued letters to schools for the abolishment of corporal punishment. However, he had not seen any impact of this letter. In this connection, a teacher (T-05) stated that proper legislation on child rights and abolishment of section

89 is a debatable issue as this involves a conflict of interest of different stakeholders that are involved, directly and indirectly, with the phenomenon of corporal punishment.

On a similar theme, a participant (NGO-01) stated that the government is interested in

211 proper legislation and its implementation of child rights but the main cause which is responsible for not implementing the UNCRC is misinterpretation and misconception about it. He claimed that people in Pakistan consider it as a western trap for the purpose of losing control over new generations, a view which he thought was also supported by some religious scholars.

As mentioned earlier that Pakistan is a country which has been dominated by religious teachings and culture factors and it is indeed a hard task to develop any law and implement it particularly related to children’s issues as socially and religiously it will face severe hurdles and constraints.

7.8 Corporal Punishment in Schools of Pakistan and the Role of Non-Government

Organizations for its Abolishment

NGO’s work to reduce the practice of corporal punishment through the publication of research and through coordinated actions and community development. SAIEVAC

(2011) reported that 54.7% of the world total child population are living in countries where they are not protected against the practice of corporal punishment and within this population 44.7% live in the South Asian countries. SPARC reports that although the

Government of Pakistan has attempted to develop legislation to ban corporal punishment, not only in schools but also in other places including the homes and workplaces, it has failed to achieve this (SPARC, 2015). The government has also been unable to develop a database of reported cases which are usually resolved through informal means (SPARC, 2016). They highlight that its practice cannot be banned completely as it contradicts with section 89 of Pakistan Penal Code (SAIEVAC, 2011).

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The literature review (Chapter 2) reveals that the only practical steps have been taken by the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC), Save the Children and the Child Protection and Welfare Commission, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. These organizations are working for child protection and welfare but they are also confronted by various social, political, traditional and religious factors. NGO participants were asked about their role in challenging the practice of corporal punishment and many different actions were described. These included: Social marketing (NGO-01) including promoting different slogans that aim to create awareness and sensitization among the public (such as “maar nahin pyar” and “taleem jo pyar say di jay asar rakti hay” as discussed in Chapter 6) and radio campaigns (“mera bachpan” or “my childhood”);

Training (NGO-02 and NGO-10) for teachers on alternative methods of discipline, developing child friendly classrooms and child rights, although it was noted that ‘during training participants support our point of view but when they go back to schools they do practice corporal punishment; Governance (NGO-02 and NGO-10), such as strengthening the Parent-Teacher Councils (PTC) for dealing with the issue of corporal punishment and drafting a bill on the elimination of corporal punishment to the Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa government. Monitoring and reporting (NGO-07): making a First

Investigation Report (FIR) to the relevant police station and carrying out an inquiry with the Additional District Education Officer (ADEO) and taking the matter to court

(although few cases are registered as they are usually resolved at the community level). and strengthen the PTC; and Lobbying (NGO-10) lobbying the Education Minister and

Secretary Education in this regard and pressurizing the government through the media.

Talking on the issue of child and also women’s rights is considered taboo in some parts of the country as people consider it as a personal issue. In addition, discussion of these

213 issues is considered as a western trap leading to loss of control over women and children and non-government organizations are seen as western agents for this purpose. For these reasons, many people have a negative perception of non-governmental organizations which has the effect of weakening their influence on social change.

7.9 Summary

In this chapter I have drawn a link between the previous research and the findings of the present study. My research, as with the wider literature, also finds that pro-corporal, anti-corporal and conditional corporal punishment views prevail in Pakistan in common with other countries of the world. In this study, I also find that religious factors play a key role in the practice of corporal punishment but in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa two different opinions appear to prevail; some participants consider it as the outcome of the religious teachings while others consider it as deviation from the religious teachings of

Islam to be kind, loving and affectionate with the children. Many other factors that contribute to the practice of corporal punishment besides the religious factor including;

(mis)perceptions about the achievement of academic goals, personal attributes of the child and teacher, the poor academic background of many teachers, lack of accountability of teachers, inadequate educational tools and environment, cultural factors, a lack of awareness about child rights and education, teaching workload and mass illiteracy, all of which play a key role in contributing to the problem of corporal punishment as in other parts of the world. The negative impacts observed by participants were also supported by the international literature, including; an increase in anti-social behaviour, physical abuse, an increase in aggression, feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, fear, anxiety, depression, mental health issues, low self-

214 esteem, negative impacts on the relationships between the teacher and the student, negative impacts on cognitive development, poor academic performance, promotion of a culture of violence and drop out from school. While in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa its practice is also associated with obedience, respect, discipline and achieving academic goals, research in Pakistan finds similar associations in other parts of the country. This study also found that it was difficult for most stakeholders to consider realistic alternatives and many supported the view that it will be hard for teachers to maintain discipline and class management without its practice. Different countries of the world have developed laws, policies and practices to deal with the issue of corporal punishment but unfortunately Pakistan has been unable to have a proper legislation over the issue. Participants broadly agreed that this is the outcome of religious and cultural factors along with an apparent lack of interest from the government. Whilst various non-government organizations have been working for its abolishment through legal processes and redressal mechanisms, they clearly have yet to succeed.

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Chapter 8

Theoretically Positioning Participant’s Perspectives

8.1 Preamble

It is indeed a reality that every society adopts different formal and informal means to maintain social control and discipline and corporal punishment is one such method

(Andrew and Stewart, 2002). The theoretical framework for this study was based on choice theory, attachment theory and ecological systems theory which covered aspects from the individual to the community level. In the previous chapter findings from this study were analysed with respect to the previous studies conducted on the issue of corporal punishment around the world. In this chapter I will draw a link between the philosophical positioning in choice theory, attachment theory and ecological systems theory with the findings of my study.

8.2 Choice theory, child choices and corporal punishment

The primary focus of choice theory is on awareness of the learner’s behaviour and helps in behaviour management and modification as the behaviour management of the learner is a broader issue not only in the classroom but outside of it as well. Choice theory enables the students to be aware of their responsibilities and to make decisions related to their behaviour and learning process (Bechuke and Debeila, 2012). Choice theory considers behaviour as a personal choice based upon individual feelings, need and experiences. The teacher cannot determine the behaviour of the students but he/she can help them to identify the anti-social behaviours and the choices they have about it

(Gabriel and Matthews, 2011). In this study, with respect to the concept of choice, a teacher (T-04) reported that he felt he did not have any other option to control children

216 except corporal punishment as teachers face numerous issues including overcrowded classes, high work load, no alternative methods for behaviour modification and personal frustration which he used to provide a justification for its practice. Like many others this teacher chose corporal punishment as a method of behaviour management to control the child, which in turn exploits the five elementary needs to which the humans are theoretically motivated within choice theory, including survival, love and belonging, freedom, fun and power. As discussed in chapter 4, these needs motivate an individual to a place or person. Similarly, a child psychologist (CP-04) considered the child’s behaviour was responsible for the practice of corporal punishment, a view which precludes the teacher’s choice to act in an alternative way. In contradiction to this a religious scholar (RS-06) proposed an alternative choice of ‘innamat-o-tanbihat’

(advice and rewards) for the behaviour management of the child. This opens up the possibility of different choices in relation to the child’s wrong doings and behaviour correction which can lead to positive and healthy relationships between the teacher and the student leading to pro-social habits of supporting, listening, accepting, respecting, encouraging, trusting and negotiating differences. These pro-social habits are not only beneficial for maintaining school discipline but also for protecting individual human rights and dignity. In addition to this religious scholar (RS-09) stated by quoting Hazrat

Ali (RA) that it’s a really hard task to bring about change in someone’s habit/behaviour so choices need to be made to achieve this hard task, which has also been postulated by choice theory in that only a person can change his/her behaviour and in this context the teacher or other person can only help the child to be aware of his/her behaviour and make decisions related to it. Choice theory provides a basis for understanding the child behaviour and providing choices to the teachers by either practicing corporal punishment or applying alternative methods for child behaviour modification.

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Behaviour is composed of acting, thinking, feeling and physiology which all need to be addressed in order to understand the child behavioural issues as these components play a vital role in either increasing or decreasing the anti-social behaviours and corporal punishment. In relation to corporal punishment and child choices a teacher (T-01) stated its practice sometimes leads to poor academic performance and dropping out of school, both of which are outcomes of the child’s choices and sometimes in severe cases the child runs away from home or develops feelings of fear, anger and hesitation which can have negative impacts on psychological development. Exponents of choice theory encourage children to make their own choices and decisions so that they may become aware of their self-realization but the practice of corporal punishment promote such choices and decisions which are usually negative. In addition to this another teacher (T-

02) explained this phenomenon by a Pashto proverb ‘pa zoor kali na kege” (discussed earlier) which means that you cannot change the behaviour of someone by force, only an individual can change his/her behavior; the teacher or any other adult can only help in raising awareness about the behaviour and managing and modifying it. Corporal punishment is a direct threat to the making of positive choices and decisions by the child as the teacher controls or influences through negative emotions in the child by its practice.

Choice theory promotes the concept of ‘quality world’ which is based on the personal feelings of individuals and the things which satisfy their basic needs. Conflict usually arises when the quality world does not match with the real world and individuals are unable to deal with this disjuncture (Davis, 2010). In the concept of ‘quality world’ the value of relationships between teachers and students cannot be underestimated (Davis,

2010). These relationships need to be positive and healthy so that the concept of ‘quality

218 world’ may be maintained in the child’s mind (Walter et al., 2008). Choice theory encourages children to make their own choices and decisions so they may become aware of self-realization and decision making (Charles, 2011). The child concept of quality world and awareness of his/her own choices and decisions are important for child socialization, however the practice of corporal punishment not only destroys the image of the quality world but also controls the child choices and decisions. In this context a religious scholar (RS-07) stated that teachers usually practice corporal punishment to control the children as they are unable to deal with child related issues due to which they develop a violent attitude to control the classroom. This situation leads to destruction of the image of quality world or perfect world in the mind of the child as the child’s concept of a quality world is based on beliefs, people and things which satisfy the basic needs of the child. Children believe that in school they will be secure and protected and the teachers will care for them but when the child receives punishment this paradigm is disrupted and the child starts to consider the teacher and school as a threat m which in turn leads to a negative relationship between the child and teacher. This situation spoils the child concept of the quality world and the child less able to make positive quality world choices or decisions which in turn has negative impacts on child socialisation. In support of this an NGO worker (NGO-01) stated that corporal punishment develops hatred towards the teachers and the positive relationships between the child and the teachers are hampered which in turn not only causes lack of motivation towards the school but alternatively the child makes the choice of leaving the school and dropping out. A child is dependent on people for satisfying basic needs and teachers are amongst those people with whom the child has direct expectations for protection, survival and learning, which are fundamental components of the child quality world image. The practice of corporal punishment leads to the development of

219 negative relationships between the teacher and the child which not only destroy the quality world image in the mind of the child but also leads the child to make decisions that can be regarded as dangerous for his/her life in long run. In this context a child psychologist (CP-06) considered corporal punishment as a threat in the long run as children start considering it legitimate and in adult life their choices and decisions will be based on the practice. The application of choice theory teaches the student to satisfy their needs in appropriate and effective methods but corporal punishment is against these methods which alternatively teach the child the usage of violent practices in adulthood. This situation will lead to promoting a culture of violence in the long run as children repeat the cycle of controlling behavior through physical harm.

As mentioned, the application of choice theory helps to develop awareness of the learner’s behaviour so that the teacher helps the learner to change behaviour choices and help them in behaviour management and modification. Individual behaviour and quality world are the essentials for the choice theory. Individual behaviour is based on personal choice which us influenced but not determined by the other forces. Corporal punishment is a negative and extremely limiting influence on the choices that children make in their lives. School plays a key role in child socialisation while children also consider it as a quality world after home but the practice of corporal punishment develops a negative image of this quality world in the mind of the children which in turn develops hatred towards the school that ultimately can lead to poor academic performance and school drop out.

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8.3 Attachment theory, disorganized attachment and child behaviour

Attachment theory provides a framework for child behaviour to obtain comfort, security and protection from the caregiver. This primary relationships between the child and the caregiver has an impact throughout the childhood but also continues across the life span

(Lesser and Pope, 2011). Attachment theory postulates that all human beings develop a form of attachment with the caregiver for support and care. This attachment may not only be material but also psychological and emotional (Wilkins, 2016).

Secure attachment in childhood provides the foundation for regularizing feelings, social competency, emotional security, exploration and psycho-social comfort throughout life. On the other side of the coin, insecure attachment develops attachment disorders which can lead to psycho-social hindrances, restricted exploration, reduction in social capability and unsuccessful emotional control throughout life (Taylor and Stupica,

2015). In this context a religious scholar (RS-02) stated that corporal punishment leads to insecure attachment and the child starts hating the teacher or any other adult from whom the child receives the punishment. This situation causes fear, anxiety and depression among the children which in turn leads to the psycho-social difficulties as the child associates the teacher with security, protection and comfort but corporal punishment destroys all these components. Similarly, an NGO worker (NGO-03) gave a clear picture of the situation as he stated that when a child is punished the child started disliking the teacher which in turn leads to insecure attachment causing the child mental health issues, lack of confidence, negative impacts on cognitive development, hampered thinking and anti-social personality disorder. Another NGO worker (NGO-

01) drew a link between corporal punishment, insecure attachment and its impacts on a

221 child’s personality. He stated that corporal punishment keeps the child in a continuous state of suppression which leads to mental health problems. This situation spoils the child’s concept of school as ‘a home away from home’ (Riley, 2011) which also has negative impacts on the child socialisation process as the child starts disliking the school and the teachers.

The situation becomes worse for the children when they remain with a maltreating caregiver such as the teacher, parent or substitute carer. This type of situation is conflicting and difficult for the children as they are in daily contact with people with whom they feel fearful and badly treated. This leads to disorganized attachment in which the child feels anxiety and depression which in turn can lead to behavioural problems (Wilkins, 2016). In this connection a psychologist (CP-01) stated that corporal punishment makes the child emotionally disturbed which develops feelings of hatred towards the teacher and to school, which creates a situation of mistrust and disorganized attachment between the child and the teacher. This situation can either leads to poor academic performance or drop out from school and in some cases even running away from home as the child does not want to stay in an insecure place or with a person from whom they receive severe punishment. In addition to this another child psychologist (CP-02) considered corporal punishment as a threat to social relationships as she stated that those children who are physically punished are not expressive and are unable to sustain strong social relationships which creates a submissive power dynamic in society.

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Secure attachment is a prerequisite for child personality development and socialisation while insecure or disorganized attachment is a threat to child mental health and social wellbeing. Corporal punishment can lead to disorganized attachment which in turn causes fear, anxiety, depression, frustration, poor cognitive development, hesitation, anti-social personality disorder, and criminal tendencies in psychological context while poor academic performance, school drop out and inability in holding strong social relationships. Thus, school is an important sociological institution but if corporal punishment is routinely practiced as part of institutionalized behavior it does not provide a safe space to the children. If the teacher who is considered as an ideal person for children practices corporal punishment this can lead to disorganized attachment with the child which in turn hampers their mental health and positive socialisation processes.

8.4 Ecological systems theory and child protection

Ecological systems theory considers the whole system which effects human development. This theory is not only applicable to the individual perspective but also at organizational or community level. The theory identifies four system layers which are; 1) Microsystem referring to the interpersonal relationships, activities and roles which a developing person experiences related to the personality development, 2)

Mesosystem draw a link between the microsystem and 3) Exosystem, which is actually the composition of social systems on which the developing person do not individually have influence, 4) Macrosystem is the blue print of the culture and sub-culture (Johnson,

2008). In this context a teacher (T-01) stated that the practice of corporal punishment is mainly due to the cultural acceptability of the phenomenon which alternatively showed the support for corporal punishment at the macro level of the ecological system

223 as mainly people consider corporal punishment as the outcome of cultural acceptability on a large scale. Indeed it is a common myth in our society that people consider it as the outcome of cultural acceptability and consider it as a traditional method for child socialization. In continuation a teacher (T-03) referred to the microsystem in considering corporal punishment as the outcome of poor academic performance of the child and discipline which takes into consideration the interpersonal relationships between the individuals at the micro level and which subsequently led to the practice of corporal punishment. Similarly, another teacher (T-07) considered unawareness, illiteracy and teacher attitude responsible for corporal punishment at the micro level as the people of Pakistan are largely unaware about the child rights due to mass illiteracy.

In addition, a teacher (T-10) considered corporal punishment as the outcome of teacher’s frustration, overcrowded classes, inefficient teachers, and the educational and socio-economic status of teachers responsible for its practice which connects with the mezzo system of the ecological system. Among the religious scholars a participant (RS-

01) consider corporal punishment as a deviation from the Islamic teachings which leads to the concept of belief at the macrosystem layer. In continuation a religious scholar

(RS-07) gave a detailed description by linking the corporal punishment with teacher’s attitudes towards control to hide incompetency, teacher’s own frustration, power shortages, teacher’s financial issues, student family background and overcrowded classes. A collection of reasons that cut across the entire ecosystem. An NGO worker

(NGO-09) considered it as the outcome of inadequate legislation on the issue. Although the government have passed the Prohibition of Corporal Punishment bill, 2014, it has not been implemented as it contradicts with section 89 of PPC (discussed earlier). This situation addresses the exosystem layer of ecological system. In addition to this, at the exosystem level, a child psychologist (CP-04) also considered a lack of legislation on

224 corporal punishment responsible for its practice while a parent (P-09) considered cultural and religious factors responsible for the practice of corporal punishment at the macro level. Thus, the factors which lead to the practice of corporal punishment in the schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa can be explained with the help of the following ecological framework model (Figure 8.1).

Figure 8.1: An Explanaotory Ecological Framework for the Perpetuation of

Corporal Punishment in Schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Microsystem Mezzo/ Exosystem Macrosystem

1. Teachers attitude 1. Unawareness towards CP 2. Illiteracy 2. Personal experience 3. Overcrowded classes

in childhood 4. Power shortage 1. Religious support or 3. Child behaviour and 5. No alternative deviation from CP poor academics methods for religious teachings 4. Teachers frustration behaviour 2. Cultural support 5. Educational status modification 3. Legal acceptance of teacher 6. Lack of monitoring 6. Socio-economic 7. Ineffective status legislation 7. Teachers financial issues

Feedback Paths

The Figure 8.1 clearly explains the factors which leads to the practice of corporal punishment in schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. At the microsystem level these factors are teacher’s attitudes towards corporal punishment, personal experience in childhood, child behaviour and poor academic performance, teacher’s own frustration, educational

225 status of the teacher, socio-economic status of the teacher and the teacher’s financial problems. At the mezzo/exosystem level the factors which cause corporal punishment are lack of awareness among the local people, mass illiteracy, overcrowded classes, deviation from the Islamic teachings related to child socialisation, electricity or power shortages, a lack of awareness and training in alternative methods for child behaviour modification, a lack of monitoring mechanisms and inadequate and ineffective legislation at the local level. Finally, at macrosystem level religious support and cultural and legal acceptance play a vital role in maintaining the practice of corporal punishment. For an effective intervention programme such measures need to be taken which can address all these layers of ecological system in a beneficial way.

Ecological system theory provides a detailed framework of how the physical environment, psychological, socio-cultural and biological factors effect the wellbeing of an individual (Bone, 2015). This suggest that violence is the outcome of multiple factors including interpersonal relationships, individual factors, the interplay between the individuals, social, cultural and environmental factors (Saraw, 2009). The analysis of every system layer is mandatory for effective intervention for the purpose of child protection (Garbarino, 2005). Human development is an interaction between the individual and their environment which has at least four components i.e. 1) person, 2) context, 3) process and 4) time (Ettekal and Mahoney, 2017) each of which need to be utilized to have a strong and beneficial intervention programme. In this context participants in this study have given some suggestions. A teacher (T-01) stated that our educational system needs to be revised as it is more theoretical than practical; it needs to be more activity based so the children learn things practically. In addition, community awareness, media and local government representatives can also play a vital

226 role in the abolishment of corporal punishment and these factors are prerequisite for a fruitful intervention as it addresses the component of person, context and process. In this context another teacher (T-02) referred to both the mezzo and macro level changes as he said that behaviour change at the community level, keen government interest and culture modification is mandatory to get rid of corporal punishment of children while another (T-09) suggested that government should take measures to reduce teacher’s frustration and increase their job satisfaction which would have positive impacts on the abolishment of corporal punishment. A religious scholar (RS-02) stated that if a teacher deals with a student as he/she deals with their own child then it will reduce corporal punishment to a great extent. Also controlling personal anger will be extremely beneficial in this context which addresses the micro system intervention and which also addresses the components of person, context and process of human development.

Among the NGO workers a participant (NGO-01) stated that government needs to develop proper legislation and ensure its implementation with sound complaint mechanisms to deal with such cases along with teacher training on alternative methods for behaviour modification of the child which addresses the mezzo/exosystem intervention of the ecological system and the component of process and time of human development. Another NGO worker (NGO-09) stated that problem solving mechanisms need to be developed at school level to deal with the child behavioural issues, which could be achieved be appointing social workers and child psychologists in schools which will result in positive interpersonal relationships which in turn helps in the abolishment of corporal punishment at school level as the school council will play a vital role in understanding the child behaviour and provide a proper solution for behavioural issues of the child. Indeed, proper planning and attention need to be given to address all the layers of ecological system theory in order to have a beneficial

227 intervention and the impacts of which are sustainable for the abolishment of corporal punishment and the promotion of child protection in the long run.

8.5 Summary

In this chapter I have analysed a selection of participants views in relation to choice theory, attachment theory and ecological system theory. The study reported that corporal punishment has negative impacts on child choices and decision making. In addition, this study also reported that corporal punishment is a major threat to the child’s five basic needs of survival, love and belonging, freedom, fun and power. The study also reported that it’s a really hard task to bring change in someone’s behavior; this goal can only be achieved with the positive approach that is supporting, listening, accepting, respecting, encouraging, trusting and negotiating the differences reflected in choice theory. Corporal punishment also spoils the child’s imagination of their quality world about the school which can lead to mental health issues, poor academic achievement and school drop out.

The study further reported that corporal punishment destroys the possibility of secure relationships between the teacher and the child and can lead to insecure and disorganized attachment. This situation not only destroys the child’s concept of school as ‘a home away from home’ but also leads to mental health and interpersonal problems such as lack of confidence, negative impacts on cognitive development, hampered thinking, anti-social personality disorder, anxiety, depression and behavioural problems which leads to psycho-social difficulties, poor academic achievement and poor attendance.

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With respect to the four system layers in ecological theory i.e. Microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem and macrosystem, the study reported that the causative factors for corporal punishment at the micro level are teacher’s attitude towards corporal punishment, personal experience in childhood, child behaviour and poor academic achievement, teacher’s frustration, the educational status and socio-economic status of teachers, and teacher’s financial issues. At the mezzo/exosystem level these are lack of awareness of child rights, illiteracy, overcrowded classes, power shortages, no alternative methods for behaviour modification and legal acceptance while at the macro level religious support or deviation from religious teachings, legal and cultural acceptability are considered responsible for its practice. For strong and beneficial intervention the study reported that reformation of the educational system, mass awareness, teachers training programmes, alternative methods for behaviour modification, dealing with teacher’s frustration, following authentic Islamic teachings about child development, effective legislation and its implementation, sound monitoring mechanisms and accountability will play a vital role in the abolishment of corporal punishment.

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Chapter 9

How to Bring About the Change?

‘‘It doesn’t matter what I believe, it only matters what I can prove’’

(A Few Good Men directed by Rob Reiner, 1992)

Social Work is a helping and problem-solving profession (Ahmed, 2017) and to this end my research aims to bring change in the current approach towards the practice of corporal punishment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. However, the final objective of this study was also to provide research informed policy recommendations for the elimination or minimization of corporal punishment practiced in schools of Pakistan more generally.

The theoretical foundation for this final chapter is based on John Kotter’s management theory which postulates that the aim of management is to retain functioning and to bring about useful change in the passage to time within it through purposeful leadership. This theory has the potential for translation into the field of social work where it could facilitate transformation in cultural change. The theory identifies various characteristics and obstacles which, if dealt with adequately, will bring about the desired change

(Kotter, 1996). These are presented in an eight steps change model which I adopt in the chapter to provide a research informed approach that will change public and professional perceptions and attitudes towards the practice of corporal punishment of children in Pakistan. Kotter’s (2012) eight steps are;

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1. Establishing a sense of urgency

2. Creating a guiding coalition

3. Developing a vision and strategy

4. Communicating the change vision through volunteers

5. Empowering broad-based action by removing barriers to change

6. Generating short term wins

7. Consolidating gains and producing more change

8. Anchoring new approaches in the culture or institution

This presents a simple model with a twofold focus; first it implements change step by step and second, it allows the individuals to accept change as a part of their culture

(Bhola, 2010). Corporal punishment is indeed a multi-faced phenomenon and a multi- dimensional approach is needed to deal with this problem. In the presented eight steps model the first four steps are the transformation process needed to gain the trust of a threatened and hardened status quo. From stages five to seven many new ideas and practices will be produced, while the eighth step aims to bring the desired change into the culture and sustain it (Kotter, 2012).

“Progressiveness is looking forward intelligently, looking within critically, and

moving on incessantly”

(Waldo Pondray Warren)

In this chapter Kotter’s eight step is applied to the practice of corporal punishment and in order to provide a road map that will bring about the desired change in the society.

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Each and every step has been linked with the argumentation and findings from the study to provide a decisive model of change which will be beneficial for policy makers, educationalists and child protection specialists.

Step One: Establishing a Sense of Urgency

Urgency here does not mean to be in fear of a situation. Fear hurts, but a sense of urgency will help us to deal with the issue of corporal punishment in Pakistan (Ajayi,

2002). When we ask anyone in our society to bring major change in our culture the answer in majority of the cases is, or probably equal to, ‘very, very difficult’.

Establishing a sense of urgency is really important here to gain the required cooperation as very few people are indeed interested to bring the desired change (Kotter, 1996).

Pakistan ratified UNCRC in 1990 which makes the country liable to have adequate legislation and its implementation for child protection and welfare but the country is unable to do so due to the cultural, social, religious and financial barriers, outlined in previous chapters. In the 21st century Pakistan’s children are deprived of their basic rights and it is now that the government and the public should become truly committed towards child protection and welfare. This is also a stage of fear and anxiety but proper attention need to be given to deal with the issue of corporal punishment. If we assume that this world is full of obstacles and problems so it has also provided us great opportunities and resources. The main thing which is most important here is to prioritize our goals and proper attention and concentration need to be given to it not only on a government level but also at the community level. The present study did not identify a sense of urgency in the reports of stakeholders; the majority seemed resigned to accept the problem and were of the opinion that it is so deeply embedded in the culture that it

232 cannot be changed. They also could not envisage effective alternatives and many (N=

27) supported the practice, either completely or conditionally. However, the 21st

Century has heralded a new context with and of the main new elements that may help to develop a sense of urgency is that emerging technology and social media. Children and their parents now have ready access to mobile phones and the Internet where they can share experience on video in real time or in blogs and in chat rooms. The harmful impacts will be more available for public and media appraisal, not just in Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa and Pakistan, but across the world. This sense of urgency can therefore be established with the help of electronic and print media by children and other local and national stakeholders who have some support for abolishing corporal punishment with the help of religious scholars and those working in the field of child protection.

Step Two: Creating the Guiding Coalition

‘‘Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself’’

(Leo Tolstoy)

When the sense of urgency grows at government and community level then proper attention needs to be given to this stage to harness that energy and build a team whose members are able to bring the desired change in the society. These members must have knowledge about the issues, are credible enough to deal with them in many different contexts and have the authority to work on the issue (Campbell, 2008). In order to have a purposeful team proper attention needs to be given to analysing the characteristics of stakeholders who need to be members of the team. Different stakeholders are associated with the practice of corporal punishment in the schools of Pakistan including teachers,

233 parents, religious scholars, non-government organization workers, child psychologists and children themselves. In order to have a team which can truly be beneficial and reliable to bring the desired change in Pakistan’s society, teachers, religious scholars and non-government organizations workers (who are against corporal punishment) must be included in this group.

Step Three: Developing a Vision and Strategy

The responsibility of a well-functioning guiding group is to have a clear vision and direction to deal with the issue for which the group exists. This requires clarity on what sort of change they want to bring, who needs to be addressed and what are the best ways to make the vision as reality. If the group do not have a clear vision and strategy then it is unlikely to be successful (Kotter and Cohen, 2002). The vision of this group will be to abolish the practice of corporal punishment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and to influence national policy and practice in Pakistan and the strategy will be to gain the confidence and commitment of all the stakeholders relevant to changing the practice of corporal punishment. This is an important stage as the vision and strategy need to be developed taking account of the social, cultural and religious values of Pakistan so it will be able to manage these challenges at the implementation stage.

Step Four: Communicating the Change Vision through Volunteers

The vision needs to be clear and precise so large numbers of people can understand it rendering genuine communicative power. This sense of desirable future change will coordinate and motivate the actions of individuals which will be beneficial for cultural transformation (Kotter, 1996). Proper attention needs to be given to this stage in order

234 that the vision must be communicated in the way that has been planned. It can be communicated through those volunteers who can truly understand the vision and are able to communicate it properly.

Step Five: Empowering Broad-based Action by Removing the Barriers

When people start understanding the change vision and following it then the most important step is to remove the hurdles in their way. People must feel empowered when they are transforming to the stage of change. This empowerment can only be achieved by removing the barriers and allowing the individuals to focus more on the future change (Kotter and Cohen, 2002). This is a critical stage for achieving the desired change as the barriers need to be addressed properly. This study has highlighted some of the key factors which promote the practice of corporal punishment in schools of

Pakistan. These factors are; misinterpretation of the phenomenon, religious support or not following the real sense of the religious doctrine, teacher’s perceptions towards its practice, low social and educational status of teachers and lack of authority of children, lack of understanding of child behaviour, lack of accountability and no monitoring mechanism, cultural acceptability, lack of awareness about child rights, teacher’s own frustration and anxiety and no proper legislation on the issue. In order to empower individuals and to remove these barriers recommendations include the following:

1. Reformation of the Educational System

The educational system of Pakistan is based on the old traditional learning system adopted way back after the independence in 1947. Inadequate attention has been given to education development in the country; the curriculum has not been updated regularly

235 and the old coercive methods of teaching continue to be adopted for children’s academic goals and personality development. Thus, teachers still use corporal punishment for academic purposes. Therefore, a change in the current education system is necessary and this paradigm needs to be shifted from the traditional and theoretical to a more practical system in order to have an inclusive educational system where the child does not have to fear any type of corporal punishment in the learning process.

2. Mass Awareness

It is indeed a fact that people in the country are unaware of fundamental child rights and child protection. Therefore, a mass campaign is required to improve public awareness of child protection and the negative impacts of corporal punishment on children. For achieving these goals both the electronic and print media can play a vital role but the government need to allocate a proper budget for this purpose.

3. Teacher Training Programmes

No proper in-service training is designed for the teachers in the country to deal with child related issues and behaviour modification of the child. A proper training manual needs to be developed for teachers and regular training needs to be provided on modern teaching and learning techniques offering realistic alternatives to classroom management to deal with the ever-changing requirements of the contemporary society.

4. Alternative Methods for Behaviour Modification

Pakistani schools still use the old and outdated method of corporal punishment for child behaviour modification and achieving the academic goals while developed countries

236 have changed and modified these methods, keeping in view its harmful effects on children. The same paradigm change is also required in Pakistan, where such alternative methods need to be developed with the guidance of religious scholars and psychologists which should be implemented instead of corporal punishment for child behaviour modification, discipline and achieving the academic goals.

5. Strengthen of Parents-Teachers Council (PTC)

Technically, every school in the country has a parent-teacher’s council but in fact it is only on paper and not in reality. Furthermore, the PTC system does not work as it is designed to work. Attention needs to be given to this council as if it is strengthened it will not only be beneficial for upgrading the school infrastructure but will also be fruitful in dealing with child behaviour and discipline related issues, in which the practice of corporal punishment is of most importance as it create a gap not only between the child and the teachers but also had a negative impact on the child’s motivation towards the school. If this is addressed at the community level through effective PTCs it will be beneficial for dealing with the issue of corporal punishment and will be helpful in creating non-violence in communities in the future.

6. Dealing with the Teacher’s Frustration

Teachers in the schools of Pakistan face numerous issues which contribute to their anxiety and frustration. Overcrowded classes, high workloads, poor facilities in schools and low salaries are some prominent factors responsible for boosting anxiety and frustration among teachers. In order to overcome these issues and have control over the class, teachers sometimes practice corporal punishment without any major deviation

237 from the school rules by the children. If the government focused on overcoming these issues which are faced daily by teachers it will in return have positive impacts on the learning environment and in eliminating or minimizing the practice of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan.

7. Following the Real Meaning of the Islamic Teachings

Islam focuses on the teachings of mercy, kindness and affection in dealing with the child but unfortunately the authentic meaning of these teachings has not been reflected in Pakistan’s society. It may either be the failure of religious scholars to promote this or the coercive nature of our society which makes adults coercively controlling but this will always be open to debate. However, to deal with the problem of corporal punishment, proper implementation of the Islamic teaching is necessary in order to have a peaceful environment in schools and also at the community level as corporal punishment is indeed often the outcome of personal anger in the perpetrator and Islam is also focused on controlling the personal anger of oneself.

8. Proper Legislation and its Implementation

The Government of Pakistan ratified the UNCRC in 1990 which makes the country liable to make proper legislation for the rights of the child and their welfare but sadly legislation has not yet supported these ambitions. The Prohibition of Corporal

Punishment Act was passed by the National Assembly in 2014 but the Senate of

Pakistan sent it back in February 2017 as it was in contradiction with section 89 of

Pakistan Penal Code (see chapter 3 for details). To date the government therefore do not have any effective laws to deal with the issue of corporal punishment. An

238 appropriate law and its proper implementation is urgently needed to begin to deal with the problem of corporal punishment practiced in schools.

9. Complaint Mechanism

The country does not have an effective complaint mechanism and data base for the cases of corporal punishment. Although the Child Protection and Welfare Commission of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other provinces reported cases related to child abuse and corporal punishment they are rare, with the majority of cases resolved by informal means including the community elders and jirga system. In order to have a well- established complaint mechanism local and national government need to take necessary actions to enable a prompt response to the alarming situation of child punishment, abuse and exploitation in the country. Any established complaint mechanism must be autonomous and powerful so that it may not be influenced by other elements of the community.

10. Proper Monitoring, Evaluation and Accountability

The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have established an Independent Monitoring

Unit in 2013 to monitor the schools. However, this unit only monitors and evaluates the infrastructure and teacher’s and student’s attendance in schools; it does not focus on the rights of the child and child protection issues. The government need to incorporate the monitoring of child protection related issues into the job descriptions of employees of this unit and ensure that teachers will be accountable if they practice corporal punishment in schools.

239

11. Prioritizing Child Rights

Findings from research in the field suggest that the government lacks commitment in protecting children’s rights and to taking the necessary measures for effective child welfare due to various hurdles they face in this regard. The government needs to take these necessary actions in order to make child rights their priority and make such decisive plans that do not violate the basic rights of the child in all places including homes, schools and workplaces. This can only be achieved by bringing all the stakeholders including religious scholars, child psychologists, educationalists and policy makers into concerted action and make such plans on which all the stakeholders agreed.

12. Government Interest in Child Education

Pakistan is confronted with many serious socio-economic issues which make the government liable to focus on these instead of the problems of education and child exploitation in the country. Vast portions of the government’s budget have been spent on defence and other sectors that seem to be of higher priority. As a result the education sector receives a minimum portion of the budget. This situation has a long term negative impact on the country, in that the education of all children for a strong and healthy future society is essential. In the shorter term, both the school and teacher’s performance are impacted as they do not get the deserved portion from the budget which alternatively develops feelings of frustration, overcrowded class rooms and high workloads, all of which exacerbate the practice of corporal punishment. In order to overcome this situation, the government must give proper attention to the education sector and allocate an adequate portion of their budget to it as Pakistan just spent 2.7%

240 of its GDP in 2016 while the international standard is a minimum of 4% (see chapter 3 for details).

13. Advocacy Seminars on Child Rights

Non-government organizations can a play a vital role by arranging advocacy seminars in communities which focus on the importance of promoting the rights of the child and child protection issues for the future prosperity of the country. These seminars should particularly focus on the role of parents and children in protecting children from violence, abuse and exploitation as both the teachers and parents are, as elsewhere in the world, the main perpetrators of these issues confronting the children of Pakistan.

14. Promoting a Culture of Reward and Appreciation in Schools

As mentioned earlier, the educational system of Pakistan is of a coercive nature and the practice of corporal punishment is a routine phenomenon in schools. In order to overcome this problem, an alternative culture of reward and appreciation needs to be developed in schools both for the teachers and the student which will help in controlling the practice of corporal punishment.

15. Appointment of Social Workers and Child Psychologists

Inadequate attention has been given to child behavioural issues in the school. As mentioned earlier, the government has not given priority to either the educational sector or to child rights, therefore the teachers have remained free from the any sort of official pressure from the authorities to change the ways in which they manage child behaviour.

However, as teachers are not expert in understanding child behavioural issues or the

241 causes behind such problems, the government needs to appoint qualified Social

Workers and Child Psychologists to assist them. These experts will deal with a range of issues faced by the children while at the same time they will be extremely helpful in overcoming these problems, not just in schools but also in the home and community environment.

Step Six: Generating Short Term Wins

Short term wins are those that produce, evaluate and track large or small accomplishments and link them with the overall strategy and results. This step may be linked with change in terms of how the children behave and achieve academic goals without the practice of corporal punishment and on the philosophy of ‘win’ and

‘reward’. The role of teacher in this stage is of importance (Hessler, 2017) and feelings of competence and success for them will be early gains. This step needs to be critically planned to achieve the desired change. In this stage, I propose selecting two schools each from boys and girls educational establishments be selected to pilot a whole school change strategy. Early achievements should be celebrated and shared on social, print and other media.

Step Seven: Consolidating Gains and Producing More Change

The first aspect of this step is to incorporate the increased credibility of change into all structures, policies and systems which were previously not fit for the transformation process. Secondly, the change which has been achieved in the previous stage needs to be communicated to the larger audience and finally a new project of change must be started to spread the change process (Betof, 2009). In this step the short-term goals

242 which have been achieved in stage six will be spread to the other schools and it will also be communicated to policy makers, educationalists and common people with the help of teachers, parents, religious workers, non-government organization workers, social workers and child psychologists.

Step Eight: Anchoring new Approaches in the Culture or Institutional Change

Two factors are very important in this stage to properly institutionalize the change into the culture. The first is related to deliberate efforts to embed new attitudes, behaviours and approaches and underline their importance in improving children’s performance.

The second is related to allowing sufficient time for the change process in order to ensure that the coming generation fully adopt and accept the change and are ready to improve it rather than erode it. To anchor the change into culture continued renewal and innovation is needed (Child, 2015). The role of the current generation is of importance at this stage to diffuse the desired change effectively into every day culture.

The changed attitude and behaviour towards the practice of corporal punishment will have an everlasting impact on the coming generation and this will help the next generation to accept and adopt this change into the culture which will be a milestone in abolishing the practice of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan.

Summary

In this chapter I have tried to link this study with Kotter’s eight step model of change in order to propose a model of change for the abolishment of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan. Kotter’s eight step model is clearly justified with respect to the aims of this study. The first step of this model is related to creating a sense of urgency

243 for dealing with the issue of corporal punishment. The second step involves building a team for dealing with the issue. The third step is to develop a vision and strategy for this purpose. Step four focuses on communicating the vision through volunteers while step five aims to empower broad-based action by removing barriers. This study has provided research based policy recommendation for the elimination or minimization of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan, which relate to all eight steps but are particularly relevant to step five of Kotter’s model in empowering broad-based action by removing the barriers. Recommendations are; reformation of the educational system, improved public awareness, teacher training programmes, the provision of clear guidance and practical solutions for alternative methods of behaviour modification, strengthening of parent-teacher councils, following the real meaning of Islamic teachings, comprehensive legislation and its implementation, including the provision of a complaint mechanism, monitoring, evaluation and accountability, prioritizing children’s rights, government interest in and spending on child education, advocacy seminars on child rights, promoting a culture of reward and appreciation in schools and the appointment of Social Workers and Child Psychologists in schools. Step six of

Kotter’s model recommends generation of short term goals while step seven consolidates this change and produces further more sustainable change. The final step is anchoring this change into everyday culture and for this purpose the role of the current generation is vital in order to properly transform the change to next generation so that they may be able to accept and adopt the change and eliminate the notorious phenomenon of corporal punishment from the lives of the children in Pakistan.

244

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Appendix-A

Participant Information Document

Research Project Title: Practice and Politics of Corporal Punishment in Schools: A

Case study of District Peshawar, Pakistan

Researcher: Akhtar Munir, PhD Research Scholar

Faculty: Department of Social Work, Faculty of Social Sciences University of

Peshawar, Pakistan

Invitation:

You are invited to participate in this research study. Your participation will be on a voluntary basis and the information you share will be anonymised and kept confidential.

This study is being carried out under the supervision of Prof. Basharat Hussain,

Chairman Department of Criminology University of Peshawar, Pakistan. Before making your decision about participating, kindly read the following information carefully.

Purpose of the Study:

This study will contribute to a PhD in Social Work at the University of Peshawar

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The main purpose of this study is to better understand the use of corporal punishment in schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan and to provide evidence-based policy recommendations on how to overcome this problem.

279

Possible Disadvantages and Risks:

Your participation in this study will be confidential and the information you share will not be exposed to anyone and will be kept secure and be anonymised. Therefore, no risks are involved by you participating in this study.

Possible Benefits of Taking Part:

There are no immediate benefits for you or anyone else by participating in the project.

However, it is anticipated that this research study will make a noteworthy contribution to knowledge about corporal punishment as harmful to child development. The results of this study will be important both to the work of academics and practitioners that aims to raise public awareness about the issue of corporal punishment and child protection.

Results of the Research Project:

Research findings will be disseminated to relevant academics and published after the

PhD is completed.

Ethical Approval of the Study:

This project has received ethical approval from the Advanced Studies and Research

Board University of Peshawar, Pakistan on 9th September 2016.

For Further Information:

If you have any query related to this study, please contact me (Akhtar Munir) on my cell number: 0092-333-9232985.

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Appendix-B

Informed Consent Form

Respected Participant,

My name is Akhtar Munir and I am a PhD student in the Department of Social Work

University of Peshawar under the supervision of Prof. Basharat Hussain. I am inviting you to participate in my research study which is investigating the use of corporal punishment on children in schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The aims of this study are to know about the practice of corporal punishment in schools and its effects on children. Being a researcher, I am very interested in your opinions about corporal punishment. I would be extremely grateful if you could give me your precious time to complete this in-depth interview.

Your responses will be anonymised and used only for the study purposes. To maintain complete anonymity and confidentiality, the interview will be given a code instead of using your name.

The interview should not take more than 45 minutes to complete and if, at any time, you are not feeling comfortable, please ask me to stop. Also, if you do not understand any of the questions, please ask me for clarification.

You are free to withdraw from the research study at any time, even after the interview.

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Thank you, in anticipation for your participation.

Researcher Signature: ______

Participant Signature/Thumb impression: ______

Date: ______

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Appendix-C

Interview Guide

Code______

Section-A: Demographic Profile

1. What is your age? ______

2. What is your sex? ______

3. What is your qualification? ______

4. What is your occupation? ______

5. What is your professional area of interest? ______

6. Experience (In years) ______

Section-B: Nature and Extent of Corporal Punishment

7. How would you define corporal punishment?

______

______

8. What type of corporal punishment is usually given to children in schools of

Pakistan?

______

______

9. What is the extent of corporal punishment in schools of Pakistan?

______

______

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10. In your opinion, what are the reasons for the practice of corporal punishments in

schools of Pakistan?

______

______

Section-C: Psychological and Social Impacts of Corporal Punishment on

Children

11. In what way(s) corporal punishment effect children? Explain

______

______

12. Does corporal punishment have any impacts on child socialization and school

performance?

______

______

13. What are the impacts of corporal punishment on the interpersonal relationship

between teacher and student? Explain.

______

______

14. What effect(s), if any, does corporal punishments have on children’s personality

development?

______

______

15. There is misconception that children with behaviour problems can easily be

corrected through corporal punishment. What is your view about this?

______

______

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16. In your view, how might corporal punishment effects the mental health and

cognitive development of the child?

______

______

17. In your view, what sort of problems the use of corporal punishment create(s)

among children?

______

______

18. How might such problems have long term and short terms impacts on the

personality development of the child?

______

______

19. How might corporal punishment of children in school’s lead to serious pathology?

Might this include anti-social personality disorder? Can you tell me more about

this?

______

______

20. What are the impacts of corporal punishment on child emotional development?

______

______

21. There is misconception that corporal punishment is beneficial for improved school

performance. What is your view please?

______

______

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22. Researches have shown that corporal punishment has negative impacts on school

motivation? What is your view please?

______

______

23. Children feel reluctant to go to school due to fear of punishment. In this situation,

what positive development can be expected from a child with respect to his

educational performance, cognitive development, and school motivation?

______

______

24. Does corporal punishment have any role in drop out of children from school?

______

______

Section-D: Corporal Punishment in Schools (For Teachers only)

25. What do you think of discipline, what are your views about children/student’s

discipline?

______

______

26. What sort of method(s) do you use in your school to maintain discipline?

______

______

27. If a child misbehaves, how you handle such children?

______

______

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28. How often corporal punishment is used in your school?

______

______

29. Does the use of punishment have any impacts on improved class attendance?

______

______

30. What is your view on the statement that “corporal punishment is necessary to

maintain discipline in school”?

______

______

31. Do you believe that our educational system depends upon the use of corporal

punishment? Please explain

______

______

32. Do you think that corporal punishment is effective or absolutely effective in

maintaining discipline? Kindly explain in detail?

______

______

33. Do you think that corporal punishment is either absolutely necessary or necessary

for child character building? Kindly explain in detail?

______

______

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34. In your view, what might happen if corporal punishment is completely abolished

in schools?

______

______

35. If corporal punishment is abolished from schools, how would you discipline the

child?

______

______

36. Have you ever tried on alternative to corporal punishment measures to discipline a

child?

______

______

37. If yes, how was the experience

______

______

38. If no, why

______

______

39. Do you have Parent Teacher’s Council (PTC) in your school?

______

______

40. How often the meetings of PTC are conducted and what are discussed in those

meetings?

______

______

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41. Did any parent raise the issue of school corporal punishment in PTC meetings?

______

______

42. What is the redressal mechanism (if any) to complaint against a teacher on

corporal punishment?

______

______

Section-E: Parents Views on Corporal Punishment (For Parents only)

43. How often you use corporal punishment at home if your child misbehaves?

______

______

44. Do you think that corporal punishment is beneficial for your child?

______

______

45. Has any of your child received corporal punishment in school? If yes, how you

reacted

______

______

46. How often you attend the meetings of Parent Teacher’s Council (PTC)?

______

______

47. Has any case of corporal punishment is discussed in those meetings?

______

______

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48. Do you know where to lodge complaint if your child receives physical punishment

from teacher?

______

______

Section-F: Role of NGO’s (For NGO’s Workers only)

49. What your organization is doing in the field of corporal punishment?

______

______

50. If you had organized teacher’s training on corporal punishment, what was the

focus of those trainings?

______

______

51. If you had organized seminars, workshops, panel discussions, what was the view

point of the participants on corporal punishment?

______

______

52. NGO’s are blamed for creating mistrust between students, parents and teachers for

advocating against corporal punishment, do you agree?

______

______

53. Do you have any role in pressurizing the government to devise a clear-cut policy

on corporal punishment?

______

______

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Section-G: Islamic Perspective on Corporal Punishment

54. What are the Islamic teachings about child rearing and personality development?

______

______

55. If a child misbehaves, what should one do from an Islamic perspective?

______

______

56. Does Islamic teachings support the practice of corporal punishment of children,

please explain?

______

______

57. Under what conditions (if any), Islam permits the use of corporal punishment of

children.

______

______

58. If a child misbehave, how necessary is it that he should be punished or may we

adopt some other measures to correct his behaviour?

______

______

59. If other measures are adopted to correct the behaviour problem of a child, will the

religious scholars be comfortable with it?

______

______

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Section-H: Legislations on Corporal Punishment

60. Section 89 of Pakistan Penal Code legalizes the use of corporal punishment if it is

done in good faith for the benefit of a child, which is in contradiction with

UNCRC, what is your opinion regarding this?

______

______

61. Govt. of Pakistan has ratified the UNCRC in 1990 but could not implement it

properly. Why is it so?

______

______

62. The Government of Pakistan has not been able to devise a clear anti-corporal

punishment policy so far. What are the reasons? Please explain

______

______

63. To what extent, you are satisfied with the measures introduced to abolish corporal

punishment from schools.

______

______

Section-I: Suggestions and Recommendations

64. What would you suggest to minimize or abolish the use of corporal punishment in

schools of Pakistan?

______

______

Thank You

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Appendix-D

Codes used for the Data Collection/Analysis Process

Sample Categories

S No Teachers Parents Child Religious NGO’s

Psychologists Scholars Workers

1 T-01 P-01 CP-01 RS-01 NGO-01

2 T-02 P-02 CP-02 RS-02 NGO-02

3 T-03 P-03 CP-03 RS-03 NGO-03

4 T-04 P-04 CP-04 RS-04 NGO-04

5 T-05 P-05 CP-05 RS-05 NGO-05

6 T-06 P-06 CP-06 RS-06 NGO-06

7 T-07 P-07 CP-07 RS-07 NGO-07

8 T-08 P-08 CP-08 RS-08 NGO-08

9 T-09 P-09 CP-09 RS-09 NGO-09

10 T-10 P-10 CP-10 RS-10 NGO-10

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